Second Chances
by Bobbie23
Summary: Set in the two years between Hindsight and Standing Up, this is Emily's side of the story.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer – I don't own Criminal Minds or any of the characters.

Author Note – Although it begins from when Emily first arrives in London I have ignored Morgan and Penelope's trip from the start of season eight. There are time jumps in the story, so please bear with it. The reviews for the first two instalments were fantastic, I hope enjoy this one. I must admit I found it harder to write this than the first two. Let me know what you think.

Second chances – chapter one

"A hard beginning maketh a good ending."

JOHN HEYWOOD

June 2012

She didn't expect to be unpacking boxes at three in the morning, but Emily was still on DC time. Emily had arrived in London a week before her official start at Interpol to settle into the apartment that had been arranged for her. Although she planned to unpack throughout the week, the clutter was getting to her. Emily had started going through the boxes one by one just after breakfast.

Tearing the tape off the last box, Emily found her good bye gifts from the team. On top was the fluffy turquoise blanket Penelope had given her; the guide to London that Spencer gave her; a bottle of her favourite wine from Rossi; the picture that Jack had drawn at JJ's wedding; the four picture photo frame that JJ had given her. Taking the frame from the box, Emily looked at the photos. The first was of herself, JJ and Garcia; the second was of Jack and Henry stuffing their mouths full of cake; the third was of the entire team, with JJ in the centre; the last was of Emily and Derek both holding onto one another as they danced, laughing at the camera.

Sadness washed over Emily as she looked at her family. She missed them all. They had all wanted to see her off at the airport, but she refused saying she wanted them to remember her smiling rather than crying.

Derek had insisted on accompanying her to the airport, tears or not. Emily had held her breath as he pulled out a small jewellery box, hoping he wasn't going to ask her something neither of them was ready for. It was his parting gift to her; a silver necklace with a tear drop pendant. As Morgan had put it on her, his hands lingered on her shoulders. She had gripped his shirt and looked into his eyes, tears threatening to spill over. Emily pulled him down to her and their lips met. She could taste her own tears as the kiss deepened. When the kiss ended, their foreheads met and they still kept their hold on one another.

"_I'm going to miss you," she told him._

"_I suppose if I asked, you wouldn't stay, would you?"_

"_Please don't ask me," Emily begged him._

"_Then call me when you get there."_

"_I will." They both lifted their heads as her flight was called on the overhead speaker. Gently pulling herself out of his embrace, she gestured towards the departure gate. "That's my cue, I have to go."_

_Morgan grasped her hand and pulled Emily back to him for one last kiss. At her questioning gaze he explained. "Just in case we don't get a chance to do that again."_

Emily realised she was crying as a tear dropped onto the glass. Brushing it off with her thumb, she couldn't help the thoughts of doubt. Had she made a mistake? She could have found a job stateside and would have still been with her family. She could've been exploring the new dimension to her relationship with Morgan.

Standing, she made her way to the window seat and placed the photo frame on the small table there. Emily pulled Penelope's blanket around her as she sat and let the tears fall freely. Leaning back against the seat she looked out of the window. Through the tears that clung to her lashes, the street lights blurred and reminded her of the stars her Grandfather had shown her when she was a child.

Looking out over London, the tears dried up and she watched as the city began to wake up. As the first strands of the pink rising sun started creep over the horizon, Emily finally felt the pain in her heart begin to ease.

'_Every ending is also a new beginning; you just don't know it at the time.'_

Glancing at the photos on the table, she sighed. They could, and would visit. It wasn't like last time; they didn't put an empty coffin in the ground for her, they'd thrown a farewell party for her instead. They were still in her life. This was the new start she was supposed to have; she just had to embrace it.


	2. Chapter 2

Author note – Thank you for all of the reviews and followers. This is a bit slow burning for the first couple of chapters and recounts a few scenes from Hindsight, but from Emily's point of view, so if you're new to my story you may like to read that as well. I would also like to say that I miss living in London, so I may have indulged myself a little.

Second chances – chapter two

July 2012

Emily walked along the Strand towards Shaftesbury Avenue, taking in the theatre signs; listening to Black taxis' beeping as they made their way through the heaving traffic; the sounds of family days out; smelling the food being prepared in coffee shops. She made her way towards the crossing of Tottenham Court Road and Oxford Street. Once there she was greeted by the statue of Freddie Mercury, staring out at his audience, the sign behind him declaring '_We Will Rock You_.'

After being in London almost a month, she had finally found some time to wander around to explore her new city. Her new job was good, a bit hectic preparing for the Olympics, but the team she was working with were lovely and made her feel welcome. Her assistant had suggested some places she might like.

Of course Emily missed DC and her family. She talked to everyone in some form at least once a week and ladies night had been replaced by online scrabble with Cheeto Breath and All-knowing Oracle, where the words became more questionable as more alcohol was consumed. But rather than dwell on thoughts of homesickness, Emily decided to find places she could show them if they ever turned up on her doorstep, like she'd made them promise.

Around the corner from the larger than life statue she found a shop specialising television and science fiction memorabilia that Penelope and Spencer would love. A little further on a small café where she purchased a mozzarella and Parma ham Panini, which she could see herself sitting in with Dave over a cup of coffee.

Emily had already found the place she would like to show Hotch, JJ, Jack and Henry. The London Eye, so the boys could see all of London, picking out places she should show them once they were back on the ground.

As she made her way back towards Trafalgar square, she decided this was where she would like to show Derek. They would sit on the steps of the National Gallery and just people watch. The world bustling around them; children climbing on the huge lion statues at the edge of the fountains; old men feeding the pigeons while reliving their life stories with one another; tourists' clicking their cameras at street performers. Laughing occasionally at something the other pointed out, they would need very few words.

Derek.

The way Emily missed him went beyond homesickness. Thinking back to the night she told him about leaving, the way she had invited him in after he accompanied her home from JJ's wedding, how Morgan looked as he leant down to kiss her. Briefly, she had felt a twinge of anger at him; that he had waited till then to make a move. Emily had dismissed the thought as quickly as it came. They both needed that night, to say goodbye, a chance they hadn't gotten with the Doyle debacle.

After they had kissed in the kitchen, she had tried a hide a yawn from him. Chuckling slightly at her, Morgan offered to go home. Emily had looked up at him and simply shook her head as she grasped his hand and led him to her bed. She lay in Derek's arms as they talked through her plans to move, wherever they may take her. Emily jokingly promised that he would be her emergency contact if anything happened to her, a promise he'd obviously taken seriously enough to ask if she meant it. Looking into his eyes, seeing his worry, she told him she had. After that not much talking had taken place, as he rolled them over and his mouth hovered over hers, as he waited for her to tell him to stop. Emily had curled her hand in his shirt and tugged him down to her. They had only shared kisses, but Emily had felt his want when they awoke the next morning.

'_Morning,' she whispered as she looked up at him. _

The look of hunger that had answered was enough to make her wonder what would have happened if she stayed in DC.

Not wanting to think of what if's, she placed the rubbish from her sandwich in her bag and continued her journey on towards Leicester Square.


	3. Chapter 3

Author Note – thank you for the lovely reviews. Tannerose5 this is for you, I hope you like it.

Second chances – chapter three

October 2012

Even though she had never really gotten into the Halloween spirit, Emily found herself missing it this year. If Emily was in DC, Spencer would be thinking up elaborate practical jokes this time of year, mostly trying to scare Morgan; Penelope would force everyone to dress up in some form; herself would be teasing Morgan over his choice of Halloween Honey. London's celebrations of Halloween were much more subdued compared to those in DC.

Making herself a cup of tea, she settled herself on her window seat and looked at the four picture photo frame and sighed. Emily picked up her phone; looking through her contacts she selected the one person who loved Halloween the most.

"Hi Emily," Spencer answered after the second ring. "How are you?" He sounded happy.

"I'm great," she told him. "How's everyone there? Are you still at work?" Emily could hear laughing in the background.

"Actually we were all about to take Henry trick or treating," he said before he obviously covered the mouth piece on his end as she heard him mumbling something. Suddenly the hand was lifted and she heard the most excited voice she'd heard in a long time.

"Aunt Emi!" Henry almost shouted over the phone. "It's Halloween, we're gonna get candy."

Emily laughed. "Hi Henry, how are you?"

"I'm Uncle Spence for Halloween," he told her over the line. "I'm gonna figure out who the real monsters are and who are just 'tending to be monsters." Emily didn't doubt there would be pictures of Spencer and his mini version, and she would be demanding them to add to the ones around her apartment. "Momma says you're very far away, so you can't come trick or treating with us. But I'll save you some candy for when you come to visit."

Emily's heart broke a little over how sweet he was, and that she had no idea when she would have the opportunity to go home for a visit. "That's okay Henry, how about you eat my piece of candy for me and tell me what it's like."

"Okay Aunt Emi," someone in the background said something to him. "Aunt Emi, I gotta go trick or treating or else it'll be too dark."

"Bye Henry, I love you."

"Love you Aunt Emi." There were sounds of him passing the phone to someone.

"Emily?" Spencer was back.

"He's you for Halloween?" Emily teased, and she could see in her head the shy smile and lip quirk he gave when he was embarrassed.

"Uh, yeah, I'm his favourite profiler. Penelope says she will email you the photos." He paused for a minute. "Um we have to go, I have to get my FBI pass back from Henry, but can I ring you tomorrow I need your advice on something?"

Emily frowned slightly at the worried tone in his voice. "Of course, whenever you need. If you don't want to wait till tomorrow, phone me later tonight."

"No, it's not that important," he paused and Emily could hear him becoming flustered over the phone. "Well, it is, but not life or death I promise. I'll ring you tomorrow."

"Okay Spence, I'll speak to you soon," her worry evident in her voice.

"Bye Emily, and don't worry, I'm okay," Spencer tried to reassure her as he hung up. Emily contemplated her phone for a few seconds before placing it on the side table, before picking up _Slaughterhouse Five_.

The next day Emily stretched as she sat in her desk chair. She only had a few more reports to go through that Easter wanted on the Monday morning conference call. Glancing at her phone, she sighed. It would have been mid-morning in DC, so Spencer should've been awake. Briefly she wondered if his headaches had been getting to him again or if the team of specialists he'd been consulting with had found the cause. Even though he'd said it wasn't life or death, Emily hoped the man she'd come to love as a little brother was going to be okay.

About twenty minutes later, her phone lit up with her new photo of Spencer and Henry as he rang her. Snatching her phone up, Emily felt a twinge of panic in her chest. "Hi Spence."

"Hi Emily, how are you?"

"I'm good, still a little worried, are your headaches back?"

"No, no, I'm fine," he was quick to reassure her. He paused as if unsure how to proceed, and his voice was so small when he continued that Emily barely heard him. "I've met someone."

"Wow," Emily never expected that. "Who is she?"

"Doctor Maeve Donovan," Spencer told her, awe in his voice. Emily smiled, he was in love. "She's one of the specialists I've been consulting with over my headaches."

"So what does she look like?" Emily was trying to picture the kind of girl who could sweep Spencer of his feet.

"I don't know; we've never met in person; just spoken over the phone," he admitted. "But despite that, she's already the most beautiful girl in the world to me." Emily's heart swelled for her friend. Obviously he must have been worried about something to do with this woman, otherwise he wouldn't need advice. "She told me she loved me." And there it was.

"Did you say it back?"

"I was so shocked that I couldn't. By the time I overcame that shock, she had hung up."

"Do you feel the same way?" Emily asked gently, and waited while he contemplated his answer.

"I can't dance, but I want to learn so I can dance with her," Spencer told her after a moment. "Thomas Merton is our favourite author."

"Love is our true destiny. We do not find the meaning of life by ourselves alone; we find it with another," Emily knew the quote.

On the other end Spencer sighed in relief. "Yes, I love her." There was a small pause. "Emily, I'm in love."


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note – All of your reviews have been wonderful, thank you for following. In this chapter I've caught up to the start of Hindsight. Let me know what you think.

Second chances – chapter four

March 2013

Emily hated sitting at a desk, she had too much energy to burn but with the long hours she could barely fit in time for the gym. Of course as part of her role, she still had to requalify for take downs and fire arms handling, but the practice was a lot less than what she had been used to as part of the BAU. Emily tried running in the park, but lack of time combined with the awful weather made that few and far between. Which was why at nine o'clock at night she was in her apartment running on a treadmill.

She had been living in London for nearly nine months now and everything was going well. She liked her job, even though it made her a bit restless; her assistant, Amy, had become a close friend, often dragging Emily out despite being four months pregnant. She had been asked out on dates, but had politely declined them all, much to Amy's chagrin. Emily had tried to explain that she wasn't interested in a romantic relationship at the moment, leading Amy to conclude there was someone waiting for her in DC. All of Emily's denials had sounded hollow, even to her.

Neither she nor Morgan had made any commitments or declarations during any of their Skype chats; they only exchanged stories about their day to day lives, vented to one another when they were frustrated, or used the other as a sounding board for ideas they had. Emily was happy they could still have that kind of relationship when she was so far away.

Her phone started buzzing from where she rested it on the control panel. Hoping it wasn't a call from work, she picked up only to see it was JJ. Emily smiled as she answered. "Hi JJ, how are you?"

"Hi Em, I'm good, how about you?"

"Too much energy to burn. If I knew how much paperwork was involved, I would never have complained so much when I was at the BAU."

"If I recall, you didn't complain that much. You distracted Morgan most of the time."

"He distracted me first," she protested. "Not that I don't love talking to you, but by my calculation you're still at work." There was an uncomfortable silence from the other end and Emily started to worry. "Who's been hurt?" She asked, biting her lip as she waited for the answer.

"No, no, we're all fine," JJ paused. "At least physically."

"What's happened?"

"I don't know the details but I think something happened between Morgan and Spencer. They're both avoiding one another and neither will talk about it. It's just Spencer's been so closed off since Maeve's death; I'm worried he'll do something. He blew up at the lead detective when we were in Florida because nobody investigated the victims' report of harassment."

"He probably came back to work too soon; it's going to take time for him."

"I would rather he be here so we can keep an eye on him." They both remembered Spencer telling them he'd almost started using again after Emily had 'died'.

"But why would he be avoiding Morgan?"

"Morgan stepped in between Spence and the detective, and went after him when he stormed off. When they got back they didn't speak, just avoided one another."

Emily sighed. It was times like these that she felt she had abandoned them. Morgan had rung to inform her of Maeve's death and she had been devastated for Spencer upon hearing the news. He sounded so lost when Emily had phoned him; she had wanted to fold him into her arms to protect him from the rest of the world.

On the other end, JJ continued. "I was wondering if you could talk to them."

"JJ I don't know, it's between them. You know how stubborn they can be."

"And you're just as stubborn. You're more likely to get through to them."

"I'll try, okay. I don't know how much help I'm going to be."

"Thank you." There was a pause. "Damn it, I have to go; Strauss just arrived. I'll speak to you soon, maybe you, me and Pen could play scrabble in a few days. Good luck."

"I'll speak to you soon JJ." Emily placed her phone back on the control panel of the treadmill. She couldn't talk to them now, especially with Strauss in the bullpen.

Resuming her running, she looked longingly at her favourite spot in the apartment; the window seat where she looked out over London. She could hear pitter patter of rain drops through the open window. Another twenty minutes of running, a shower then she would be curled up there with her blanket, ready to phone home.

Her phone started buzzing again. Penelope. Pressing the connect button, Emily put the phone to her ear. "Hi Pen."

"Something's wrong," Penelope cut in without preamble. "I mean nobody's hurt, but something's not right between Morgan and Reid." She was panicking.

"Penelope, I'm sure everything is okay. Spence is still grieving; he's probably lashing out at anyone who tries to talk to him about it."

"Who called you?" Emily sighed before admitting it was JJ.

"But Spencer isn't lashing out, he's avoiding everyone. And Morgan called me Penelope. He didn't even smile, just locked himself away in his office." Things must have been bad; Emily could only count a handful of times Morgan had called Penelope by her given name and not Baby Girl. "I'm worried about them."

"I know, JJ already asked me to talk to them. I'm not sure about how to approach it."

"Approach Morgan first, whenever anyone's tried to reach out to Spence, he just clams up and runs away at the first opportunity. I'm scared he'll start using again." Emily started to become very concerned at the techie repeating JJ's fears as well.

"I'll talk to him soon."

"Thank you my love. I'm sorry for not asking before, but how are you? You sound a little out of breath."

"I'm on the treadmill; it's hard trying to fit in the gym while sat at a desk."

"Preaching to the choir sister."

"Oh, how's it going?" Emily recalled some of Penelope's recent pictures.

"Lost a few more pounds, got a steady pace going."

"You look great, like you always have." She could hear a knock the other end and someone speaking.

"I'm sorry I have to cut this short, Strauss wants to come in, love you my raven haired beauty."

"Love you too Pen." Disconnecting Emily sent a quick message to Morgan. She slowed the pace of the treadmill as she waited for him to reply.


	5. Chapter 5

Second chances – chapter five

As Emily waited for her phone to ring, she was tempted to just book herself on the next flight to DC, but with how busy work was, she could imagine the reaction Easter would have. During the nine months she'd been in London, she had been unable to take vacation time. Emily found it funny that while growing up she had never considered anywhere her home; her mothers' assignments moved them around so often she hadn't stayed anywhere long enough. But DC was home, it was where her family was. Now all she wanted to do was go home and see with her own eyes that everyone was okay.

Morgan's face lit up the screen of her phone as it started ringing. Emily answered on the second ring as she turned off the treadmill. "Hi," she answered, a little out of breath.

"Hey Princess, you okay?" Emily could hear his concern over the phone, which she laughed off hoping to reassure him.

"Yeah, sorry. I was just on my treadmill. It's hard trying to fit the gym in with the long hours."

"See that's the downside of being stuck behind a desk," Emily could hear his smile through the phone.

"I miss our weekly take down sessions," Emily admitted as she flopped down on the window seat, pulling the blanket around her shoulders. "Not that I've had much chance to go into the field here."

"Ah Princess," she could hear the smirk in his voice. "I miss you attempting to tackle me." She laughed at his teasing. It made her yearn for the times when they were training together.

"Derek Morgan, you have had your ass handed to you by me on several occasions."

"Okay, okay, whatever you say." Once their laughter died down, she turned serious.

"How is everyone?" Emily tried to keep her voice neutral.

"Everyone's okay," Morgan replied quickly.

"What about Spencer?"

"Who called?"

"JJ and PG. One after the other," she replied. "They're worried about him. And you." The silence on the other end made Emily think she may have over stepped.

"He's angry, this last case hit a little close to home. It reminded of him of what Maeve went through."

"So why is he avoiding you?" Emily could tell there was more than that.

"I went to find him after he got into it with the lead detective. And he admitted that he's been thinking about what ifs." Instantly Emily thought of the night she had been lying on the warehouse floor in Morgan's arms. She held her breath as Morgan continued. "He told me he was mad at me."

"He's grieving; this is not your fault," she told him gently.

"Actually it is my fault," she waited for him to continue. "Reid is angry with me because I got a second chance and never took it."

"Oh." Emily didn't know what else to say. She knew he was referring to them, and her thoughts immediately went back to when she was in his arms feeling safe and loved; his soft gentle kisses trailing down her throat; his hands caressing her; the way he held his breath as she traced her fingertips along the buttons of his shirt; her disappointment when his hands covered hers, stopping them, telling her he would never be able to let her go if they made love.

"I'm sorry if I've made you uncomfortable," Morgan told her, bringing her back to the present.

"I'm not uncomfortable," Emily tried to convince herself as well as Morgan. She snuggled deeper into her blanket, taking comfort in the protection it offered from the slight breeze drifting in through the window. "It's just we've never talked about the night after the wedding."

"It's not the kind of thing you talk about over the phone or Skype. When we talk about us I want to be in the same room as you."

"You promise?" Emily's voice was unintentionally small and hesitant, and she winced, hoping it didn't sound like she was pinning for him.

"I promise Emily." The sincerity in his voice made her shiver at the thought of their reunion.

Emily felt slightly nervous as she continued. "I know we never really talked about what you went through while I was gone, but you did refer to it as seven months of hell. I know that you blamed yourself, and it wasn't your fault. When I returned, you were angry but not at me."

"I couldn't be angry with you, you were back in my life, something I thought would never happen."

"When I came to you for advice on dealing with Reid, you urged me to tell him about what I experienced. That it would help him understand what I went through," she paused. "Maybe you should talk to him too."

There was silence from the other end as he thought about what she said. "I'll try; he's not that responsive to people trying to help."

"Maybe sharing your experiences will encourage him to open up."

"You're a good friend Emily." Emily felt the blush start to creep up her neck and was thankful he couldn't see her.

"I wish I could be of more help." She tried to hide the small yawn, but failed.

"Keeping you up Princess?" He was smirking.

"Different time zones, Morgan." She told him, chuckling slightly.

"Get some sleep Emily, and don't worry, you have been a great help," Morgan told her. "Hopefully we'll be in the same time zone soon." Morgan hesitated. "I really want to have that conversation with you." He sounded almost shy with his confession.

"Me too," she yawned again, and he chuckled. "Good night Morgan," she whispered.

"Night Princess."

Author Note – Thank you for the reviews. Just wanted to let you know the rating is going to go up with the next chapter.


	6. Chapter 6

Author note – thank you for all the lovely reviews. This chapter is a bit longer than the others I have written, and I've been tweaking it for a while. Let me know what you think.

Second chance – chapter six

April 2013

It was Friday and after a long week at work, all she could think about was sitting on her window seat sipping a glass of wine while she looked out over the London skyline. Stepping out of the stairwell of her building, Emily caught her bag in the door. Turning to dislodge it, she failed to see the man sitting on the floor outside her apartment. He rose when he saw her, watching for a moment. As she turned, their gazes locked.

After a moment of shock, amazed Morgan was standing in front of her, Emily shouldered her bag and stepped into him as her arms went around his waist.

Morgan discreetly breathed her in, trying to commit as much of this moment to memory. Emily lifted her eyes to meet his, joy dancing in them. She could feel his heart began to beat faster as he realised that he was the cause of her happiness.

"Hey Princess, miss me?"

"Always," she answered with the word he'd told her on so many occasions. "What are you doing here?"

"Maybe I missed you too."

A noise from behind disrupted the reunion as one of Emily's neighbours exited their apartment. Releasing Morgan, she let them into her apartment, turning on the light in the hallway. Going into the kitchen to set her bag down, she called out to him. "How long are you here for?"

"If it's okay with you a week?"

"Of course it is I told you that you're always welcome." Emily made a slight grimace at realising her work schedule from Monday.

"What's wrong?" Morgan asked from the door of the kitchen, with a small frown.

"Nothing, it's just that I have a few big meetings next week, but I'll talk to Amy and see if she can work wonders with my hectic schedule." Her stomach rumbled. "You hungry?" Emily asked.

After ordering their food, she sat next to Morgan in her favourite spot. As he spoke to her about their friends back home, she felt her gaze wonder to the setting sun, the rhythm of his words comforting, Emily allowed her eyes to close.

Morgan watched her; she looked more relaxed than he'd seen her in a long time. Sensing his gaze on her, Emily opened her eyes.

"What?" She asked.

"I don't think I've ever seen you that peaceful," he told her.

"It's this spot," she explained, tapping the cushion of the seat with her fingertips. "Do you remember the Angel Maker?" He nodded, wondering where she was going with this. "I was able to identify the puncture wounds on the victims as constellations, because of my grandfather teaching me about them when I was younger. It was one of the few happy memories I had from when I was a child. And when I moved here, I was missing everyone, thinking I had made a mistake by coming here. Thinking I should be back in DC exploring what I'd left behind," she added.

"Then on my second night, I'd finished unpacking boxes in the living room when I sat here, looking out over London. I couldn't see the stars because there's too much pollution, but with the glow of the street lights I was reminded of those times when my grandfather would show me the stars. I know you don't go in for signs of fate, but I took it as one, that I was meant to be here for the time being at least." She smiled at the memory of the old man who'd shown her such affection, who left her life when she was too young. They locked gazes again, a moment passing between them. "Tell me more about home," she whispered.

He paused, remembering for the first time what had bought him here. Spencer's grieving. The envelope that held the plane ticket and the events that led them there. They had spoken about Spencer telling him he was mad at him, and due to Emily's encouragement he'd spoken to the younger man about his grief regarding Emily's 'death'. Morgan had never told Emily what had been said, but she knew they had spoken.

At Morgan's silence, Emily asked "How's Spencer doing?"

"Better," Morgan responded. "Slowly coming out of the shell he built around himself following Maeve's death. He's still got a long way to go." Morgan added, recalling the way he'd had to dispose of the syringe and vials of clear liquid.

"It's good he has you to talk too."

Morgan leant forward to brace his elbows on his knees as he thought about how to respond. "You were right, telling him about my experiences helped break the ice." He paused before adding. "Not everyone knows what it's like to hold someone you love as they die." At her nervous look, he said. "I don't hold it against you, you never made the decision to tell us you died. Like I said before, you're back in my life now and that's what matters. Doyle, the lies, everything, that's in the past now. I think it's time we left it there, don't you agree?"

She smiled in relief at him; Emily didn't want to start down that road again. "I agree." She paused, desperately wanting to change the subject. "So, you never told me why you're here."

Morgan leant back to mirror her position on the seat, letting his hands fall into his lap. "I really have missed you, talking through a webcam or over the phone isn't the same as face to face."

"No it's not," Emily agreed as she moved her head to rest on his shoulder as his words echoed his promise from a couple of weeks ago. "Touching isn't possible either." She told him as she moved her hand to graze his where it lay on his thigh, instantly feeling the spark flow between them. Feeling him swallow, she tilted her head to look up at him, finding his intense gaze on her, eyebrow raised. Emily had seen that look before, and unconsciously her gaze drifted to his lips; her tongue touching her own lips as she gave a small nod of her permission to his unspoken question.

"No, it's not," he mumbled as he leant down to touch his lips to hers. Morgan drew back slightly. "I've missed you," he told her before he captured her lips once more, deepening the kiss almost immediately.

Emily gasped when he grasped the hand that was touching his and used it to guide her so she was sitting on his lap. Adjusting to her new position, she braced her hands on his shoulders for support; Emily was a little breathless as pulled herself away from his lips allowing her forehead to drop down to touch his. "So you came all the way to London just to kiss me?"

"Oh there are a lot of things I want to do while I'm here," he mumbled, winking at her as she kissed him again. They smiled into one another as Derek clasped his hands on her hips and pulled her closer, each kiss becoming more desperate than the last. Emily moved to caress his jaw with one hand as the other toyed with his collar at the back of his neck.

As Derek's fingers eased themselves under the hem of Emily's shirt, the intercom buzzed. Emily pulled away slightly, chuckling at Derek's growl of frustration. "That's the food. We will continue this later," she promised him, pecking him lightly on the lips before moving completely out of his arms to answer the door.

While they ate, Morgan told her of the things that he'd been instructed to bring over, most of which from Penelope, a bag of candy and some pictures from Henry that he had drawn for his Aunt Emi, to brighten up her apartment, and a scarf from Reid. In turn, she told of all the places she'd discovered since being in the city that she'd try to show him them before he returned home.

Stretching as she stood, Emily grabbed their plates to take into the kitchen. Placing their plates in the sink, she looked down at herself, realising that she was still in the outfit she'd worn to work Emily felt a little grubby. "If you don't mind, I'm going to take a shower," she called out to Morgan. "Make yourself at home."

"Would it be alright if I grabbed a shower after you?"

"Of course. If you want to watch TV, the remote should be on the arm of the sofa."

"Okay, thanks."

Emily moved to the bathroom, turning the faucet on for the water to heat while she undressed. As she reached for the edge of her shirt, she remembered Morgan's fingertips dancing along her skin making her tingle. Quickly shedding the rest of her clothing, she stepped under the water allowing it to wash over her, trying not to be overwhelmed by the possible outcomes of tonight.

Morgan had come to London for her. She had been anticipating their reunion since they spoke a few weeks ago; Emily had been waiting for this for nine months, longer if she was honest with herself. Emily felt a surge of panic as she thought about if it all went wrong, whether it was worth risking their friendship. But Emily didn't want to run away from her feelings anymore.

"_Will and I make it work." _ Emily recalled JJ telling her once. She didn't know if she would be able to deal with the heartbreak of saying goodbye at the airport, not knowing if or when they might see each other again. She could sense there was something else he needed to tell her, but she knew better than to push him.

Turning the shower off, she stepped into the cool air of the bathroom. Shivering as she wrapped a towel around her, Emily took a quick look around the bathroom. Making sure her dirty clothes were in the hamper, she pulled a couple of clean towels out for Morgan and put them on the toilet seat.

Stepping into the hallway, Emily noticed Morgan's bags laying there. Guest room or hers? Picking them up, she called out over her shoulder as she carried them into her room. "Bathroom's free; I put some towels out for you."

"Okay, thanks." His reply came as she heard him shut off the TV.

Emily shut the door to her room as she put his bags in front of her wardrobe. Drying quickly, she decided she would let the week progress, dealing with revelations as they came. As she pondered her underwear draw, she heard the shower turn on. Picking a simple black bra and panty set, she allowed her thoughts drift back to few hours earlier. Emily wanted Morgan, and she had felt his need for her. Putting the small items of clothing on, she lay back on her bed propping herself up on the pillows. Tonight would be for them.

The water stopped running and Emily waited in anticipation as she heard him shuffling around. The bathroom door opened and she heard him walking around the hallway searching for his bag. After a few minutes, there was a small knock on her door.

Swallowing the lump that formed in her throat, she called out to him as she rose to her knees on the bed. "Come in."

Emily had to bite her lip to hold back a laugh as Morgan's head popped around the door, his eyes bulging as he saw her in her underwear. "Looking for your bag?"

Morgan entered her room, a towel wrapped around his waist, and his eyes travelled the length of her body; finally raising his gaze to hers he was unable to vocalise his answer so he simply nodded. "You won't be needing it tonight," she said holding a hand out to him. His hand slipped into hers as he reached the bed.

Pausing slightly, Morgan just took in the sight of her. Emily could feel the pink blush rising as he spoke. "There's no going back after this," he told her.

"I know," she admitted. "But this is something we both need. Neither of us knows what will happen tomorrow, next week or even next year. We deserve our chance; I think we've both earned it." Hooking an arm around his shoulders, her hand coming to rest on the back of his head, she pulled him to her gently as he nodded in agreement.


	7. Chapter 7

Author note – the reviews for the last chapter were brilliant, thank you so much for continuing to read. Please let me know what you think.

Second chances – chapter seven

Their lips met in a gentle kiss. Morgan's fingers released his towel, coming to rest on Emily's hips, just above the waistband of her panties; while Emily's arm joined the other around his shoulders, drawing him closer till his knees met the bed, his towel falling away completely. Emily shuffled back to allow Morgan to climb onto the bed. Breaking the kiss, Emily allowed herself to take in the sight before her; her gaze following the path a water drop made travelling down his chest, abdomen, and further. Lifting her eyes to his, she saw his initial anxiety replaced by desire.

Dropping back, Emily brought her legs out from underneath her as Morgan crawled in between them; his hands skimming along her thighs as he leant into her, coming to brace themselves on the duvet either side of her head as he held himself above her. Her eyes drifted down his body again, and his quiet chuckle brought her gaze back up to his.

"You have some catching up to do," Morgan told her as his lips captured hers again. Emily felt his tongue grazing her lip, deepening the kiss.

Breaking away from her lips, Morgan pressed feather light kisses along her jaw, down her neck. Emily lifted her chin to allow him more access, gasping when she felt his teeth nip her collar bone. He continued kissing his way down her body as Emily felt his hand tracing along her spine towards the clasp of her bra, causing her to shiver.

Morgan looked up at her, a small smile playing on his lips as his fingertips retraced her spin causing her to shiver again. "That's an interesting thing to know," he mumbled against her as he placed a kiss on the top curve of her breast; undoing the clasp, pulling the bra away from her. His hands moved to her panties as he helped her remove them as well.

They started to explore each other, something they both had wanted to do for years. Morgan paused when he came across the scars left behind by Ian Doyle's attack. Emily flinched and started to pull away from him. He tightened his hold on her to still her movements. Morgan looked up at her from where he hovered above her stomach. Locking gazes with her tear filled eyes; he moved his hand to touch the scar, lowering his lips to follow the path his fingertips made. Emily allowed the tears to spill over as Morgan kissed his way back up to her chest. Placing a kiss over the scar where he'd seen the now missing four leaf clover brand, Morgan raised his eyebrow in question.

"I had it removed," Emily admitted, trying to subdue the sob that escaped. "I couldn't look at it in the mirror anymore. He branded me with his mark, not just physically," she gestured to her chest and stomach, "but in here as well." She told him tapping one finger to the side her head, openly crying now.

"He's gone, he can't hurt you anymore. He won't take you away from me again," Morgan whispered, lips caressing her cheek.

Turning her head she captured his lips in a deep kiss, both of them tasting her tears on their lips, pulling away she pleaded with him. "Help me forget." Knowing this was what she needed; Morgan leant into her as they came together. Emily gasped as he entered her. Morgan looked down at her in concern.

"It's been a while," she explained, becoming accustomed to him.

Emily's hands moved to his back, nails digging in slightly, holding him close as he moved within her. His pace quickening as their climaxes neared. Morgan swallowed her gasps in a kiss before pulling back to look at her, watching her draw closer to her peak.

Leaning down to place a kiss by her ear, he whispered "Let go, I've got you." She immediately tensed, head thrown back, crying out his name as she went over the edge, with him following close behind.

Disengaging, he rolled them over so she lay on his chest. Stroking her arm, he felt her breathing even out as she drifted off to sleep. Looking down at her, Morgan was grateful that exhaustion had overcome her. The trust Emily had placed in him while exposing her deepest secrets had overwhelmed him; he had been fighting his own tears as he made love to her.

Consummating their relationship confirmed to him what he had always known. There was no way he could go back to being just friends with her. He was pretty sure she felt the same. Feeling Emily's arm tighten around him as she tried to get closer to him, Morgan smiled down at her placing a kiss on her forehead. He silently thanked Reid for providing him with this opportunity. Morgan allowed his own eyes to close, safe in the knowledge that she was in his arms and he could protect her from whatever nightmares came to her in the night.

Sitting in Trafalgar Square at lunch time the following day, Morgan felt Emily wrap an arm around his as they sat on the steps. He wondered what was going on in her head, she had been quiet all day and Morgan hoped she didn't regret the night before.

Glancing around, Morgan started to chuckle, drawing Emily's attention. He point at a little girl, about five years old, throwing a coin into one of fountains, closing her eyes dramatically as she made her wish. Emily smiled as she heard the little girl telling her mother that she wished she could have an ice cream.

Returning to the apartment early that evening, Morgan spotted a chess board set up, mid game, on her desk near her laptop.

"Who are you playing?"

"Spencer, we email each other when we've figured out our next move."

"Who's winning?"

"Spencer," Emily smirked at him. "I may be able to beat him at poker, but he still kicks my ass at chess." She paused before asking him. "Do you play?"

"No, I picked up some of the rules watching Gideon and Reid play but I've never played."

Grabbing another older looking board from her bookcase Emily led him to the sofa, setting the board on the small coffee table she kept there. "Come on, I'll teach you." She told him while setting up the pieces.

Leaning against the back of the sofa, Morgan watched her. She became more animated as she moved pieces around the board, explaining what each piece did.

Emily suddenly paused, recalling disastrous dates where she revealed too much about her nerdy interests, how she referenced Kilgore Trout once, only for her date to look back at her blankly. Looking up she expected to find Morgan smirking at her, ready to tease. Instead, Emily found herself looking at a mix of hunger and adoration. They stared at one another as Emily felt the blush creep up her neck. Wanting to hide it, she ducked her head and continued moving the pieces at a slower pace, and he gave her all the time she needed.

Once she was done, Emily dared to look back up. Morgan was still looking at her. She felt herself caught in his gaze as he reached over to take hold of her hand, the feel of a gentle tug was all it took and she was in his lap. Her free hand landed on the back of the sofa, preventing her from falling on him. Their joined hands coming to rest on his chest as his other reached up to move her hair out of the way. He tilted his head upwards, never breaking eye contact; she leaned down to meet him halfway.

They sighed into each other's mouths as their hands released to draw each other closer as they deepened the kiss; Morgan's arms reaching for Emily's waist, fingertips tracing along the hem of her shirt, while Emily wrapped her arms around his neck.

As Morgan's mouth moved from hers', trailing kisses down her neck, Emily needed more. Moving her hands to buttons of his shirt she leant back to undo them, once done she slipped her hands between his skin and the fabric, caressing him as she pushed it off of his shoulders. Morgan tightened his grip on her shirt, drawing it up over her head.

Emily gave a small shout of surprise when Morgan suddenly tightened his hold on her as he flipped them so she was lying on the padded cushions.

Hovering over her, Morgan took in the sight before him. Emily, breathing heavily, was looking ruffled as she looked back at him with those deep brown eyes. "You're beautiful," he whispered, and she blushed again, averting her gaze. Lifting her chin, he asked; "Tell me you want this."

Her eyes met his. "I want you."


	8. Chapter 8

Author Note – Wow, what a response to the last couple of chapters. Thank you all so much for your continued support. I must admit I have written more chapters, but was finding it hard going over them, not quite happy with them. So I decided to start posting earlier than I intended to. Your reviews have spurred me to go back and fix those chapters, the last two being the result. I'm grateful for all comments, please let me know what you think.

Second chances – chapter eight

It was Monday morning and Emily was running late for work. Hurrying out the front door, calling out a goodbye to Morgan as he dressed in the bedroom, she made her way to the underground station. After a short tube ride, she exited the Westminster station and walked quickly to the Interpol offices.

Taking the elevator to her floor, she ignored the strange glances from her colleagues, some double checking their watches. Emily was usually the first one in the office, and one of the last to leave. Smile plastered on her face, she couldn't bring herself to care what they thought or assumed. Stopping at the small kitchen, Emily made herself and her pregnant assistant a cup of tea; she couldn't keep her thoughts from drifting back to the reason she was running late. Emily had been brushing her teeth in the bathroom as Morgan stepped under the shower. Appreciating the view had led to her joining him. She chuckled as she remembered him turning around, smirk in place.

"_You're going to be late Princess,"_ Morgan had mumbled as he pulled her to him.

Her assistant Amy glanced up at Emily as she approached her desk; she was unable to hide her enthusiasm. "Please tell me some tall, dark and handsome put that smile on your face this morning." Emily's smile turned playful as she placed the tea in front of her assistant.

"Who says I didn't put a smile on his face first?" Emily told her as she went to open her office door. Amy followed, waddling behind, messages in hand.

"Oh, don't tease me," Amy said, rubbing her hand on her swollen stomach. "I need to live vicariously through others." Emily laughed at her while settling herself at her desk. Unlike many of her colleagues, Amy wasn't afraid to ask the boss about her personal life. She had a big heart, and had gone out her way to make Emily feel welcome. The rest of the team she worked with were lovely but some of them were too caught up in office politics.

Reeling from the events of the weekend, Emily decided to indulge her friend and her need for girl talk. "A friend flew in Friday to surprise me."

"Just a friend?" Amy questioned. "I need more details than that." She told Emily as she sat opposite her.

"Do I have any messages?" Emily countered, gesturing to the pieces of paper in Amy's hand. Amy sighed.

"Our Director, Mr Easter, called to remind you that the video conference is at half eleven and that you need to have all training requirements ready to present, as well as updates on all current cases. As you were running behind, I have compiled the training records for you to review and sent an email to all Unit Chiefs asking them to email you with the details of their cases. Now back to the reason you were running behind, who made you so smiley this morning?"

Emily couldn't help glancing at the photo on her desk. It had been taken on a night out, all seven members of the BAU team crammed in to a corner booth at a restaurant while a waiter took the photo. Morgan, who had been sitting next to her, had decided to tiggle her just as the flash went off making her laugh.

Amy noticed the look and plucked the photo of the desk, turning it to examine the people in it. Looking at her bosses' big smile in the photo, mirroring the one she now wore, Amy looked at the person who caused it. "Definitely tall, dark and handsome," she said placing the photo back where it belonged. "Please tell me those muscles are as good in the flesh."

"Better," Emily replied.

"Be still my heart," Amy gave a fake swoon, fanning herself with the message slips. "But I thought you said that was your old team," Amy said, gesturing to the photo.

"It is; nothing happened while we worked together, nothing really till this weekend," Emily suddenly felt the need to explain they were never unprofessional.

Amy smiled kindly at her bosses' worry. "I just think it's awfully romantic." Seeing Emily's blush, she decided to tease a bit more. "Apparently you're making up for lost time."

"Remind me to introduce you to my friend Penelope the next time she's on Skype," Emily said, an embarrassed chuckle escaping. Looking at her watch, her eyes bulged as she saw it was almost ten. "I better get on reviewing those files, was there another message for me?" She asked pointing to the other slip in Amy's hand.

"Only a baby shower invite from me." Amy passed her the invite. "I'll leave you to your paperwork; you don't need any more distractions."

"Thank you Amy." She said to Amy's retreating form. "Oh, could you look at my schedule this week? I wanted to see if there is anything that could be moved around so I can work from home for a day or maybe two." Amy looked over her shoulder and winked.

"I'll see what I can do."

Taking a sip of her tea, Emily opened to the top file on her desk.

Hours later, Emily sat back in her chair rubbing her temples lightly from the headache she felt forming there. It had been a long conference call which had mainly been focused on other field offices which hadn't been performing as well as her own. She'd had to listen to Easter ramble on at the other office chiefs about getting more from their teams, silently thanking Amy for the work she had done that morning. The London office had apparently improved enough since she started that Easter was happy to ignore her for the majority of the call after hearing her updates, for which Emily was grateful. She did enjoy her job, seemingly endless, mind numbing meetings aside.

Noticing it was just past six on her watch; Emily decided to call it a day, envisioning a hot bath followed by curling up on the sofa with Morgan. The foreign feeling of domesticity came over her, which was quickly replaced with a slight frown as she realised it would last only a week. They needed to talk, but they were putting it off preferring to concentrate on the new physical aspect of their relationship, having spent most of Sunday morning in bed before strolling around a nearby park in the afternoon.

Slipping her suit jacket on, Emily picked up her bag and case. Walking to the door, she double checked her office as she left. Stepping out into Amy's office, Emily was made aware of how much she would miss her assistant when she was on maternity leave. She was stifling a yawn while concentrating on the schedule, trying to find Emily more time to work from home.

"Amy, go home. You and the baby need to rest."

Amy looked up in relief at her boss. "I've managed to shift some things around. You have to be here for the meeting tomorrow morning with the teams, but after that you're able to work from home till Thursday afternoon, when you have the meeting with the Scotland Yard liaison. I've already sent the files you will need to your computer."

"Thank you. I have no idea what I would've done without you today."

"All I ask is that I hear all the details," Amy said as she gathered her things and turned her computer off. "Vicarious living," Amy told her, tapping her protruding stomach. Emily chuckled at her lightly, holding the door open.

"What am I going to do when you're on maternity leave?" Emily asked as they stepped into the elevator.

"Just give me a week with my replacement, and I'll sort it out." Emily wasn't as confident as her assistant. "Right, I'll see you in the morning. Enjoy your evening and your 'friend'."

"You too Amy," Emily ignored her teasing. "Goodnight," she called as they parted ways outside the main entrance.

A short while later, Emily walked through her front door, the feeling of domesticity overcame her again, as she heard Morgan in the kitchen. Putting her coat and bag on the rack, she tucked her briefcase under her desk. Walking into the kitchen, she found Morgan standing over the hob cooking dinner. Coming up behind him, she gently wrapped an arm around his waist, her hand slightly caressing his chest as she peered over his shoulder into the pot.

"What are you cooking? It smells good."

Morgan looked over his shoulder with a smile. "Hi," he said, giving her a quick kiss. "Just Bolognese, it's still got about an hour to simmer." Turning completely to her, he wrapped both arms around her.

"Hi," Emily whispered, kissing him. Morgan groaned when she pulled away. "I'm going to grab a bath before dinner. I've been sat in a meeting for hours, and feel a little stiff."

"Go and relax I'm gonna finish up here."

"Well, I was kind of hoping you would join me." She told him as she looked over her shoulder at him, walking out of the kitchen. As she continued down the hallway, she could hear his footsteps as he followed her.

A few hours later they were sat on the sofa watching a film. "This was a great surprise," Emily said sleepily as she snuggled into the blanket, wrapping it around her a bit tighter.

"What was? Dinner? That I can cook? We're not all challenged in the kitchen like you," he teased.

"I can cook, but I choose not to most of the time," she paused, trying to figure out how to continue. "Dinner was lovely, but I was talking about your visit."

"Well, we needed to have a conversation and I didn't want there to be three thousand, six hundred and seventy miles between us to have it."

"Three thousand, six hundred and seventy miles? Have you been talking to Doctor Reid?" Emily had meant it as a joke, but it seemed to trigger something in Morgan as he shifted slightly so he was sitting sideways on the sofa, facing her, a gap between them.

"Actually he's the one who convinced me to come," he allowed that to sink in for a moment. "After I talked to you about the situation with him, and promising you that we would talk face to face, I was second guessing myself, second guessing us. I mean I didn't know what was really going on in your life, if you had met someone; that maybe the night after the wedding was only just a goodbye. Have you met someone?" He sounded worried that there may be someone else.

"There's been no one," she shook her head, and he nodded in relief before continuing his story.

"The Monday morning after he and I talked, I found an envelope on my desk with a plane ticket to London in it, it was Reid's way of saying thanks," he admitted. "I had it nearly a month, before he turned round and told me that most people don't get a second chance, let alone a third. Ten minutes later I asked Hotch for the time off." Morgan took another deep breath before continuing. "I want, need more than a week with you. I know there's no way I can go back to being just friends. Could you?" He looked nervous, waiting for her to answer.

"No," she admitted quietly. "Distance is going to be an issue."

"I'm willing to give it a try. Our schedules aren't ideal, I get that. But like you said the other day, neither of us knows what's going to happen tomorrow, next week, or a year from now. With our past I don't want there to be any regrets; I want to be able to love you openly. So, are you willing to try?"

"After everything that's happened we deserve to be happy, but I'm afraid that if I allow myself to love you more than I do, and something happens, I don't know if I could bear the thought of either one us going through that again. It's one of the reasons I left." Being in London had given her the space she needed to think; she needed to take that step back, to get used to the fact everyone still cared for her, and wanted her to be in their lives after everything that happened, to get closure. The risk of losing someone was too much to bear witness to.

Morgan reached over and grasped her hand. "I'm scared too, but I can't walk away from this."

"I can't either," Emily confessed, sighing as she shut her eyes briefly. "We do things in the wrong order," she chuckled nervously, feeling better when Morgan started to laugh.

"We do," he agreed, caressing her hand with his thumb.

"The sex alone will have me hoping on a plane," she told him with a sparkle in her eye.

A deep chuckle escaped from him. "Did you ever imagine it would be bad?" he wondered, a smile teasing his lips.

"Whenever I imagined us, it was never bad, far from it. Usually very intense, always hot, I would be screaming your name as we came together over and over again." She thought her words had the desired effect until his small smile turned into a full blown smirk.

"I always knew you wanted me," he told her leaning in for a kiss. Laughing, she tried to playfully shove him away before his lips connected with hers.

Relaxing into him, Emily felt at ease again as they slipped into their usual banter. They both had the same fears, but they wanted to overcome them, they would make it work. Morgan shifted slightly so they were reclining on the arm of the sofa; with Emily's head resting on his chest, Morgan caressed her back lightly, fingertips running up and down her spin, making her tingle, as their attention returned to the film they had been watching. After a little while a thought struck Emily.

"I think we should keep this between us for now," she told him gently. "I mean at least until we're used to it ourselves."

"I agree, for the most part," he started, looking down at her. "But I would like to tell Reid the basics of what's happened at least to ease his mind a little. I can't go back to DC and not tell him anything, seeing as he gave the push I needed to come here," Morgan explained. He had wanted to phone the younger man several times since arriving in London, to tell share with someone what was happening; but he wanted to talk to Reid in person, still unsure how to express his thanks, how to repay him for this opportunity.

Emily nodded, happy that both Morgan and Spencer had someone to confide in. From his expression, she wondered what they had told one another, but she would never ask him break Spencer's confidence. Emily knew that Spencer would never betray them. "Okay, but I would like to be there when we tell everyone else."

"There is no way I'm dealing with that by myself," Morgan told her, thinking especially of Penelope's reaction. Emily made a half groan, half laugh noise.

"We're going to need earplugs for PG's scream, aren't we? You know she isn't going to let me get away without revealing certain secrets of your body, right? I'm warning you that there will be a ladies' night and I will be interrogated mercilessly." He smirked down at her, trying not to laugh at her outburst. "It's okay for you, the guys will probably just shake hands, or give a supportive pat on the shoulder, and there may be a comment from Rossi. But they won't demand details," she told him, laughing gently.

"Details?" he questioned with an eyebrow raised.

Emily allowed a sly smile to grace her lips as she responded. "Well, they would want to know about how it started, why I kept it from them; and other details such as size, satisfaction, if you're as good in bed as you look like you would be."

"And what would your answers be?" He asked returning the sly smile.


	9. Chapter 9

Author Note – I decided to take a little break from Emily's side of the story.

Second chances – chapter nine

Standing in the middle of Heathrow departure lounge, Emily was reminded of ten months ago standing in Dulles airport. Only this time Morgan was the one leaving.

Hearing his flight being called, Morgan turned to pick up his bag. Looking at Emily, he found her eyes full of sadness, reminding him of the night of the wedding. Closing the space between them, he kissed her. Pulling back to rest his forehead on hers, he took a deep breath. "I'll call you when I get home," he told her, touching his lips to hers again. "I'm going to miss waking up next to you," Morgan admitted.

"Hopefully I can get some time to come home soon," she said. "I'm going to miss you." The flight was called again, and Morgan pulled away letting his hand linger in hers as he tried to hold on as long as he could. She tightened her hold as she tugged him back to her, kissing him again. "In case we don't get a chance to do that again." Emily told him, his eyes lighting up with recognition as she repeated his words from almost a year ago.

"This is going to be hard, isn't it?" He asked and she nodded. His flight was called again, and he groaned. "I really have to go." Breaking away from her completely, he shouldered his bag and turned to walk to the gate. Looking back at her from where he stood in line to get his ticket checked, he found Emily watching him with watering eyes. Morgan raised his hand to give a small wave, and she smiled, raising her hand too.

Arriving back at the BAU on Monday morning, Morgan passed Rossi in the kitchenette as he reached for his cup on the shelf.

"Welcome home, Morgan." Rossi greeted him. "Good vacation?"

Morgan couldn't hide his smile as he thought back to his time with Emily. "Very good," Morgan said with a nod of his head.

Rossi nodded with him, a smile on his face, twinkle in his eye. "How's Emily?"

Morgan looked him in the eye, realising the older man had an idea of the true purpose of his trip. "Very good," he repeated before adding, a little sadly. "London suits her."

Rossi watched him for a moment before his smile became sympathetic as he began to walk towards his office. "Seems like London suits you too," he told him with a wink.

Morgan turned back to the counter as he waited for the kettle to boil. "It does," he mumbled. Morgan liked London and the calming effect it had on him and Emily, but neither of them were ready for talks of the where they may live in the future. He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. Pulling it out he saw Emily's face, the picture he had taken of her as she sat on her window seat, looking relaxed as she looked out over the London skyline.

'_Send my love to everyone, talk to you later, Em x' _He smiled as her read her message, not noticing Penelope coming up behind him.

"What's that smile for? You just got back from vacation, you shouldn't be that happy," she told him with a kiss on the cheek. "Welcome home Hot Stuff. How's Emily?"

"Hey, Baby Girl. Emily is great. She sends her love, as well as gifts," he told her shaking the bag in his hand. Her gaze shifted towards the bag, before looking back at his face.

"I miss her; did she say anything about when she could come home for a visit?" Her expression was hopeful. If Penelope noticed the sparkle leaving his eyes, she didn't mention it.

Part of Morgan wanted to tell her everything, to tell everyone, but he and Emily needed time to get used to the change in their relationship before everyone else got involved. Morgan had always confided in Penelope and felt bad that he was keeping this wonderful secret from her. Looking at Penelope he shook his head as he told her sadly, "Not yet, she's crazy busy over there." Which was the truth; Emily had mentioned an operation they were going to be starting. She had no idea when she would get time for a visit. Morgan's heart deflated as he realised just how hard long distance was going to be.

The light left her eyes as his words sunk in. "But she hasn't had any vacation time at all," Penelope started. "I get that with our jobs we don't get much time, but nearly a year without vacation?"

"Baby girl, you know that she would love to come home for a visit, but with all the recent attacks on British soil there's no way she can get time off, may be in a few months."

"I know, I know, I just really miss her." Penelope told him as she made her own coffee. Feeling the same he turned so he leant against the counter, his gaze wondering over the bullpen, finally falling on Reid's empty chair. Morgan wanted to speak to him and wondered where he was.

"How's everything been here?" He asked casually.

"Quiet," she sighed. "Cold cases and regular consults. No need to go out of town though." Morgan nodded along with her words, glad they hadn't needed him. Penelope turned to the bullpen, following his gaze to Reid's chair, she remembered something. "Oh, Boy Wonder is waiting in your office for you; he wants your opinion on something."

Morgan looked towards his office. Sure enough he could see Reid sitting in the chair opposite the desk engrossed in the file open on his crossed legs. Opening the bag, he pulled out Penelope's gift; a mug with a pink sparkly union jack on it. Her eyes lit up with glee as she took it from him. "I love it, thank you." She quickly rinsed it under the tap before pouring her coffee into it.

"It was that or a cup with Prince William on it," he told her.

Penelope looked at him in mock annoyance. "You just don't want anybody to replace you as my Prince Charming." After looking at the mug, she brought her eyes back up to his face, smiling. "Don't worry, nobody could."

Strauss entered the bullpen, passing them with a stern glance as she strode towards Hotch's office. "That's not a happy Section Chief," Penelope muttered, sounding a little worried.

"Nope, uh, Baby Girl I better go and check what Reid wants my opinion on," Morgan told her gesturing towards his office.

"I need to get back to my sanctuary of the all-knowing." She told him as started to move, walking backwards towards the door, she waggled her finger at him as she spoke again. "I want to hear all the details of how Emily is and what London is like. Lunch?"

"Is on me Baby Girl," Morgan told her walking towards his office.

"There better be pictures," Penelope called out over her shoulder, as she turned to open the door. Morgan made a mental note to double check his phone for any incriminating pictures which may give them away.

Walking into his office, he put his go bag down by his desk as he greeted Reid. "Hey man, sorry I'm a little late."

"That's okay, I wanted your opinion on this, I think I found a link between a series of murders in Vegas and wanted a second opinion before going to Hotch." Morgan inwardly winced as he sat in his chair; Reid had been second guessing himself lately, something Morgan hoped would stop while he was away. Taking the offered file, he started to read. As always, Reid was right he just needed to get his confidence in himself back.

Reid watched him read the file for a minute before curiosity got the better of him. "How was London?" Reid's voice was hesitant, a little nervous that things may not have gone well. For once Morgan's body language didn't give him away; Reid couldn't detect any inflection in his voice to indicate how the trip had gone.

Looking up from the file, Morgan saw him glancing at the door. Following the gaze, he saw no one paying attention to them. Reid turned back to him, with expectant eyes. "I have no idea how to thank you," Morgan told him.

"This was my thank you to you. You helped me by giving me the opportunity to talk about Maeve freely without expectations." Reid said, his eyes shifting from side to side.

Morgan ignored the movement for a moment. "Still, if there's anything I can ever do to…" Reid held up a hand to stop him.

"We all deserve second chances, I'm happy that I could provide you with a chance at yours." There was a pang of jealousy that came over him, but he dismissed it. He was happy for his friends; hopefully in time he would be able to have another chance at love. "How's Emily?"

"Amazing," Morgan said, unable to stop the smile from spreading across his face.

"So you've decided to have a long distance relationship?" Reid clarified.

"Yeah, about that, we uh, want to keep that to ourselves, for now anyway while we get used to it." Reid nodded in understanding; it was their story to tell not his. "Emily is hoping she will be able to take a long weekend in a couple of months so we can tell everyone else," Morgan explained. "I wanted to tell you, because without you, I don't think I would have ever taken that risk."

"I don't think it was much of a risk," Reid told him. "Emily feels the same way you do, you just didn't know it. I'm happy for you," Reid added quietly, his eyes shifting again, trying to avoid eye contact. Morgan frowned slightly at the movement.

"Are you still having dreams?" Morgan asked and Reid nodded.

"They're not nightmares, though," Reid was quick to tell him. "It's more everyday things; Maeve and I sit and talk about books. Or we met at the restaurant like we intended to and have the date we wanted. Sometimes we dance." He said with a small quirk of his lips, slightly embarrassed by the longing sound of his voice.

"Kid, you can't dance," Morgan replied with a smile of his own.

"In my dreams I can."


	10. Chapter 10

Author Note – I'm really trying to spread out posting my chapters, but I just can't seem to help it. Let me know what you think.

Second chances – chapter ten

June 2013

Reclining in her plane seat, Emily tried to relax as much as possible but felt the excitement building the closer they got to DC. She had all but begged Easter for a long weekend. It was the first time that Emily had returned to DC since she had left for London; it was the first time she would see Morgan since he had visited her, two months earlier.

After their talk, the rest of their week had flown by. He had met her for lunch on Tuesday, meeting Amy, who had immediately been charmed by his smile when he invited her to join them. Saturday afternoon had come too quickly for them, when they had to say goodbye at Heathrow.

They had tried to have contact in some way every day, by email or text if they couldn't speak on the phone or via Skype. Apparently his almost constant checking of his phone had led to Penelope asking him if he had a new girlfriend, wondering why she hadn't met her yet. Spencer had expressed his happiness for them to Morgan after they spoke, promising not to reveal their relationship to the others till they were ready.

They were planning on revealing their relationship to everyone this weekend. They still hadn't figured out how they were going to tell everyone. Of course Spencer already knew, but Morgan suspected Rossi had figured something out due to comment Rossi had made on his return; and she had heard the smirk in JJ's voice as the blonde had asked her how Morgan's visit was.

The captain announced their descent into Dulles, and Emily buckled her seat belt. Morgan would be waiting for her. With a slight bump of the landing, she felt her excitement grow, she tried to remain as calm as possible exiting the plane. Years of travelling had taught her to pack light; she only had a carry on so she didn't have to deal with baggage claim and getting through the checkpoints had been surprisingly quick.

Soon she found herself standing in the doorway of the arrivals searching the crowd of waiting families with her eyes, and then she saw Morgan, still in his work suit, leaning against a pillar watching her. Her smile almost split her face in two as she walked towards him.

Morgan's arms immediately opened as Emily got within a few feet. Stepping into him, his arms closed around her, their eyes closing in relief as they held one another. Emily opened her eyes as she felt Morgan's hand rise to turn her cheek, his lips claiming hers and she moaned into his mouth as he deepened the kiss.

When the need for air became too much for her, Emily pulled back, not leaving his hold. Looking up into his twinkling eyes, she smiled. "Hi."

"Hi," he whispered back, while running his hands from her waist to her shoulders. She pecked him on the lips again before he let go of her so they could leave the airport, his hand resting on the small of her back, guiding her. As they walked, Emily kept turning to look at him, not quite believing that she was home. Once they were in the car, she asked him about the plans for the weekend.

"Well, tonight we're meeting the rest of the team for dinner and drinks. Then I believe that JJ, Alex and Penelope want to drag you out tomorrow night," he smiled, remembering their conversation regarding the next ladies' night. She smiled along with him, knowing he trusted her with deciding what details to share with their friends. "And then hopefully a lazy Sunday before I drop you back here Monday," he told her trying to keep his tone neutral at the thought of her going back to London.

At the mention of their next parting, she wanted to lighten the suddenly sullen mood, and Emily posed a bet. "So, maybe we shouldn't tell anyone about us, just let them figure it out. They are profilers." Morgan nodded along with her reasoning, not really thinking she was serious. Apparently she was. "Wager? Breakfast in bed for the winner. Who do you think will acknowledge it first? I'm going to go with Rossi." Morgan laughed in response, contemplating his bet.

"I think it will be Alex."

"That's not fair, I don't know her," she told him at the thought of meeting her replacement.

"Fair? I already told you about Rossi," Morgan said noticing how she nervously pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth. "Don't worry you'll like her." Emily smiled at him for trying to reassure her. The rest of their journey to Morgan's house was spent in comfortable silence.

They retrieved their bags from the trunk and walked up the steps to the front door, where they heard Clooney give a warning bark from the inside. Unlocking the door, Clooney, a grey Alsatian, greeted them wagging his tail as he realised it was his master, eyeing Emily with a tilt of the head as she entered. He seemed to like it when she bent down to stroke him.

Standing to face Morgan, Emily suddenly found herself backed up against the front door, Morgan's lips on hers; she kissed him back, feeling his tongue lightly caressing her bottom lip. Breaking away from his lips, Emily tilted her head back to give him more access, groaning as he kissed his way down her neck, she asked "How much time do we have?" Her hands had already found the buttons of his shirt, undoing them.

"A couple of hours," he mumbled into her collar bone, nipping her there, as his hands came to grip her waist, lifting her so she could wrap her legs around him.

"Then take me to bed," she told him as he walked to his bedroom.

Two hours later, a freshly showered Emily stood over her small case, open on the bed, in just her underwear. She heard Morgan moan as he entered the bedroom after his shower. Emily looked at him over her shoulder.

"Princess, we are never going to leave the house if you stay dressed like that," Morgan told her, his eyes trailing down her slim body.

Pulling her black dress with a thin red belt at the waist out of the bag, Emily decided to tease him further as she turned to face him. Keeping eye contact with Morgan, Emily stepped into the dress, slowly pulling the arms up until just the back needed to be zipped up. Turning her back on him expectantly, Emily nodded over her shoulder at the zip before facing forward again. She felt him step up behind her pulling the zip up. Task complete, Morgan gently moved her hair out of the way to place a soft kiss at the nape of her neck; she closed her eyes as she felt a spark of arousal run through her.

When he moved away to his chest of drawers, she found herself sighing slightly with disappointment, but decided to busy herself with finishing her hair and make-up.

Half an hour later they were parking across the street from the bar. They were only a few minutes late, but through the busy crowd gathered at the bar they could see all their friends seated at a table at the back of the room in the corner. Emily looked at Morgan, apprehensive at what was about to happen. He looked slightly nervous as well. They were both very private people, and they were about to become the centre of attention.

As they crossed the street, Morgan's hand rested on her back once more, and stayed there as he opened the door of the restaurant and ushered her in ahead of him. Stopping just inside the doorway, Emily looked at her family, watching them for a moment. The enormity of what was about to happen began to sink in; thankfully no one from their group noticed their arrival, all involved in conversations with one another. Morgan sensed her worry and gripped Emily's hand, squeezing gently in reassurance, and he pulled her after him as he pushed his way through the patrons of the bar. "No backing out now Emily," he told her quietly.

Approaching the table, they heard a big scream. "Emily!" Penelope squealed as she jumped to greet Emily, pulling her into a bone crushing hug. The technical analyst held onto Emily for a moment before she pulled back to get a better look at the brunette. "I can't believe you're finally home."

"I finally found some time for a long weekend," Emily told her, as she pulled away to hug JJ and Rossi.

"You look very happy," Rossi whispered in her ear. Emily looked at him quizzically as he discreetly nodded his head in Derek's direction. Her face flushed slightly as she smiled at him as he winked. He would let them tell everyone in their own way.

After hugging Hotch, she engulfed Spencer in her arms, holding him tight as she whispered in his ear, "Thank you." Spencer pulled away with a gentle smile.

Looking around she spied another brunette standing shyly to the side of the group of profilers. Alex Blake. Offering her hand to the woman, she introduced herself. "Hi I'm Emily."

"Alex," she said, shaking Emily's hand. "This is a bit weird, isn't it?"

"Just a little," Emily agreed.

Everyone took their seats in the booth, Emily sitting next to Morgan. Leaning into him slightly, she whispered in his ear, "I want pancakes in the morning. Rossi already called us out." Morgan's eyes connected with the older man's across the table, as Rossi nodded at him, smiling in approval.

The next few hours were spent exchanging stories from the past year. Morgan had been right, she did like Alex, and Emily thought she was a good fit for the team. They had shared interests, discussing the books they both loved and the places they travelled.

Emily's gaze settled on Spencer a few times, grateful that he had encouraged Morgan to come and see her. What she observed made her worry. He seemed subdued, only contributing to the conversation when asked something directly; a complete contrast to when she had spoken to him at Halloween.

As the night progressed the bar began to fill with more people, making the temperature in the bar rise. Moving to the outside seating area, Emily sat with Penelope, JJ and Alex discussing their plans for the next night.

"London looks good on you Em," JJ told her.

"It is," Emily replied, taking a sip of her drink. "Gave me a chance to think some things over." JJ nodded in understanding. They're conversation in Paris that night had been brief; but JJ knew how isolated her friend had felt, she could barely imagine how coming back had overwhelmed Emily.

"So, I want to know if there's a man you're hiding overseas," Penelope cut in. Emily sputtered, knocking her glass as she put it on the table, spilling a little bit. Grabbing some napkins from middle of the table, Emily started to clean it up as she decided she would try to wait till Morgan was at her side when she revealed them to Penelope. Emily was worried about her reaction. Even though Morgan flirted with the blonde, they were nothing more than friends. But keeping their new relationship from everyone would hurt Penelope. Discreetly glancing to where Morgan standing was at the edge of the seating area talking to the others before she answered.

"Huh? A man?" Emily repeated only for the tipsy Penelope to point at her accusingly.

"Repeating the question," she exclaimed a huge smile appearing. "A sign that you're lying; so who are you doing the horizontal tango with?"

Emily was saved from answering by an arm moving in between her and Penelope, grabbing her now empty glass. "Anyone need a refill?" Morgan asked an eyebrow rose towards Emily. Taking it as her cue, she jumped up saying she would help Morgan at the bar, leaving the others behind.

Standing at the bar, she leant slightly into Morgan as he ordered their drinks. "Are you okay Emily?" He asked concern in his voice.

"I'm fine, I just didn't realise how nervous I would be," Emily answered.

"You know that they'll be happy for us, don't you?" He told her, stroking her back with his fingertips, knowing how it made her tingle. Her eyes snapped to his, seeing his smirk as he continued the action, blatantly teasing her in the middle of the crowded bar.

"I know that," she said, biting her lower lip. "But telling them that you're the one making me happy is what I'm finding hard." His fingers stopped moving as he frowned and she struggled to explain. "It's not that I don't want to tell them, I know they just want us to be happy. I want you, I want this and I'm not reconsidering us, I promise. But it's the pressure of their expectations of our relationship that I'm scared of not living up to. If things go wrong, we're not the only ones who will be heartbroken," Emily clarified.

"They're our friends, they won't have expectations, they know how hard long distance is going to be, JJ especially. All that everyone will want to do is support us." She nodded, feeling the urge to kiss him for being understanding. As if sensing her want, Morgan glanced over her shoulder seeing that no one was paying attention to them, Alex and JJ were talking at the table, Reid, Rossi and Hotch shared a laugh at something Rossi had said, he didn't see Penelope and presumed she had gone to the bathroom. Morgan ducked his head to press his lips to Emily's, immediately relieved when she returned the kiss without hesitation.

Losing themselves in the kiss, they didn't notice Penelope gaping at them from the doorway of the bathroom, before regaining her composure, and walked over to them. Emily heard a small tap on Morgan's shoulder, breaking away from him, she saw a speechless Penelope standing behind them. Emily's eyes held a guilty look as she locked gazes with Penelope over Morgan's shoulder. Turning to see who had tapped him on the shoulder, Morgan started to speak. "Baby Girl…" he began.

"It's you," Penelope interrupted quietly. "You're the one who's been making her so happy." The technical analyst said, sounding a little heartbroken, as she poked Morgan in the chest. "Emily's your new girlfriend?" She questioned, and Emily held her breath as she heard the hurt in her friend's voice. Stepping closer to Morgan, Penelope kept poking him as she spoke. "I may love you Derek Morgan," Penelope paused. "But if you ever hurt her or stop treating her like a princess, I will unleash hell on your digital world."

Emily expelled the breath she'd been holding as Penelope side stepped Morgan to sweep her up in a hug, a huge smile on her face. "I'm so happy for you," Penelope whispered in her ear. Pulling back, the bubbly blonde pecked a shocked Morgan on the cheek. "I would like a vodka and cranberry juice," she told him as she looked back to peer at Emily over the rim of her glasses. "And you missy, I want details of this Heavenly God," she said waving her hand in Morgan's direction. Morgan, overcoming his shock, chuckled as he added her drink to the order.

All of the commotion had drawn the attention of the rest of the group, Emily glanced over her shoulder to find them looking at the three of them in interest, smiling at the development. Emily's jaw dropped a little as she saw Hotch and JJ pass money to Rossi, with him smugly accepting it. Emily blushed slightly as she felt Morgan's fingers intertwine in hers as she let him lead her back to their friends, feeling uncomfortable at being the centre of attention.

Morgan's fingers never released their hold on hers as they sat, and silence overcame the group. The others looked at them expectantly. Neither of them knew what to say, they hadn't really discussed this part. Fortunately they were saved by Rossi.

"So, I guess you had a good vacation, huh Morgan?" Rossi asked as Morgan pulled Emily's fingers to his mouth to place a kiss on them.

"Very good," he told the group, never taking his eyes off Emily.


	11. Chapter 11

Author Note – thank you for the lovely comments.

Second chances – chapter eleven

Three sets of eyes were all looking at her expectantly, waiting for answers. Out of the three, she found Alex's stare more reassuring. JJ and Penelope were sitting either side of her, gleams in their eyes. Taking a deep breath, Emily spoke. "Ask me whatever you want to know, but I'm not saying I'll answer everything you want to know." Emily gave a pointed look towards Penelope.

Penelope and JJ shared a look. "Well," JJ started, "he doesn't have an accent…"

"But he is a hot dude with a badge and gun," Penelope finished. Alex gave a quiet chuckle at what was unmistakably an in-joke. Emily blushed, nodding in ascent to her friends' statement.

"That he is," she told the group. Emily was grateful they were easing into the questions she knew would come.

"So Kitten, an enquiring mind wants to know how that man moves in bed," Penelope asked, a predatory look in her eye.

"It's not always in bed?" Penelope's jaw dropping was enough to give Emily a confidence boost.

"Okay, I need some background information. Let's start at the beginning, shall we?" Alex cut in before Penelope could respond. "Who started it?"

"I'm not actually sure," Emily admitted as she thought back over her relationship with Morgan. "I asked him to take me home after JJ's wedding, but he kissed me first." That may have been when they had both admitted to having feelings for one another, but the attraction had been there for years.

"He took you home after my wedding?" JJ asked. "It's been going on for a year? You were in London."

"It's not been a year, just since Morgan's visit," Emily explained. "We didn't sleep together after your wedding, we spent the night talking." The pink flush on her cheeks gave her away.

"That's not all, is it?" Penelope asked poking her pink cheek softly; she would be disappointed if that was all that happened.

"There was more kissing," Emily admitted. "A lot more kissing."

"Derek and Emily, sitting in a tree, K, I, S, S, I, N, G," JJ sang teasingly. Emily smacked her on the arm lightly, and everyone started laughing.

"I need more alcohol before I reveal any more," Emily declared standing up. "Tequila shots?" The others nodded and she went to the bar.

Returning to the table a few minutes later, Emily was laden with a tray with shot glasses, lime wedges, a salt shaker and a bottle of tequila. They each took a shot, shaking their heads at the bitter taste.

A few hours later Emily opened the front door to Morgan's house, receiving a warning growl from Clooney before he recognised her. She stumbled in the dark, unfamiliar hallway, putting her coat on the hook. Morgan had offered to pick them up, but she said they could make their own way home, not wanting him to wait up. There had been alcohol, lots of it. And more questions, lots of them, too.

"_Must have been one hell of a kiss to wait ten months for another?"_ Penelope had said to Emily. She'd even questioned the dynamics of their encounter in the shower. And her reaction to Emily mentioning the morning in the shower; "_How did you not fall?"_

Emily suddenly spun around as she heard the tap running in the kitchen. It was just then that she saw the slither of light coming from under the living room door. Pushing the kitchen door open, she found Morgan placing a glass of water on the counter as he flipped the switch on the coffee machine. He looked tired and his weary movements put Emily on edge.

"Morgan?" He turned to look at her. "What's wrong?"

"He had a nightmare," Morgan told her gesturing towards the living room. "I had to get him from an overnight café."

Instantly sobering, Emily walked quietly into the living room, Morgan following, where she found Spencer sprawled out on the couch. Sitting on the coffee table she softly reached out to push his wild hair out his face, not wanting to wake her young friend. Her heart broke as she saw the dried tear streaks and dark circles under his closed eyes. Emily could feel her own eyes watering, and hastily brushed the tears away.

"Did he take anything?" Emily asked Morgan as she locked gazes with him as he stood on the other side of the sofa.

"No," Morgan shook his head as he spoke. "I don't think he realised where he was until he got to that part of town. He got scared and called me. I told him to go to the café and wait for me."

Suddenly, Spencer started whimpering in his sleep. Emily stroked his face gently whispering reassurances. His eyes opened. "Emily?" He started to sit up, the blanket covering him dropping to his waist. Emily took the place where his head had laid, hooking her arm around him to pull his head to her lap, where he fell asleep again with her hand stroking his hair.

"Ssh," she whispered to him as she pulled the blanket back up under his chin. Morgan settled opposite them in the armchair, placing two cups of coffee and a glass of water on the table between them.

"He needs more help than I can give him," Morgan admitted quietly, and Emily nodded. "I've looked online and found a group that I want to take him to."

"He needs support, and people who understand what he's going through," Emily locked gazes with Morgan. "I think you're one of the best person for that job. Don't underestimate what you've done for him." Morgan began to shake his head, doubting himself. "Grief is a long process, there will be set backs. Just remember he called you before he took anything."

Morgan found some reassurance in her words as he sat back in the chair. "I'm glad you're here," he told her, glancing at Spencer as he finally looked peaceful.

Following his gaze, Emily nodded. "Me too."

They continued to watch over their friend, finally allowing themselves to drift off just before dawn. Emily awoke to the smell of freshly brewed coffee, the armchair opposite was empty. Looking down at Spencer, she was grateful that he was still sleeping peacefully. Moving out from under his head, she went into the kitchen.

Morgan held his arms open to her as he leant against the counter. She tucked herself into him as he held her tightly, pressing a kiss to her forehead. Emily knew he still felt guilty for Spencer's almost relapse. He had thought Spencer was getting better.

During the early hours of the morning, Morgan had been fighting his own exhaustion, when he'd had a nightmare of his own. He'd suddenly sat up and pinned her with a look of horror; Emily knew he was back in the warehouse again, with her in his arms, bleeding out. At her look of empathy, his scared expression was replaced by one of relief that she was in front of him, cradling Spencer.

Pulling back from his embrace, she kissed Morgan lightly on the lips before bringing her hand up to caress his face. "I'm going to extend my stay…" Emily started.

Morgan shook his head. "No, you've got that meeting to go to on Tuesday. You know you can't let Easter have total control over your operation." Emily nodded sadly. "And Amy is getting ready to pop, and I know you definitely don't want to miss that."

"I'm sorry," she told him; she couldn't shake the feeling that she was abandoning them.

"This is not your fault Emily, don't feel like you're letting us down," Morgan told her. Emily really wanted to believe him. They stayed in each other's embrace for a few more minutes, before Emily pulled back completely, scrunching her nose. "What?" he asked her.

"I smell of stale beer and tequila," she said looking down at her clothes. "I'm going to take a shower before Spencer wakes up."

A little while later, Emily came down from her shower to find Morgan and Spencer sat in the living room; with three cups of coffee on the table in front of them, a pamphlet lying there as well. Sitting next to Spencer on the sofa, she took a sip of her cup. Spencer turned to her with a guilt filled expression.

"I'm so sorry Emily."

"You have nothing to be apologising for," Emily told him gently.

"We'd met at the restaurant like we'd meant to, and we started to build a life together. Then one day we were walking along the Mall, when Diane came out of nowhere and shot her. Maeve died in my arms again." He closed his eyes, trying to shut out the images in his head, tears rolling down his face. "I haven't had a dream like that in weeks."

Emily looked to Morgan for guidance, but his expression mirrored Spencer's, and she knew he'd had similar dreams while she'd been gone. Neither man seemed surprised by the others' reaction; obviously they had shared a lot while Morgan had been talking Spencer through his grief. Unable to keep looking at them, Emily's eyes drifted to the pamphlet on the table. It was slightly tattered from where it was folded, and it looked old. It was for a support group at a local community centre. Sensing Morgan's gaze on her, Emily looked up to him, seeing his guilt there. He never found the group online; he'd gone to the group himself. Her heart broke for all the grief she had caused him, and she wondered how he still wanted to be with her.

"I'm going to go to the group with Morgan," Spencer interrupted their silent conversation. "I think it will be easier to talk to more people who have been through this as well. Talking to you has helped, but I think I might need more time, more help, but I can't do it alone." The last part was directed just at Morgan, gratitude evident in his voice. "Thank you for coming to get me last night," he whispered.

"Anytime Kid," Morgan told him.

They convinced Spencer to stay with them for the rest of the day, just watching old movies, in between playing some board games or cards, allowing him to talk when he wanted. Morgan insisted that Spencer sleep in his guest room that night.

In Morgan's room, Emily lay curled up in Morgan's arms, neither of them sleeping, taking comfort in the other against the emotional upheaval the day had brought. A slither of moonlight peeked in from the break in the curtains, illuminating their bodies.

"Why didn't you tell me about the support group?" She asked him. Morgan contemplated his answer, briefly closing his eyes.

"You had so much guilt dealing with the grief of six people, that I couldn't tell you," he opened his eyes. "Penelope gave me the leaflet; she knew I wasn't sleeping when we were keeping watch on Declan. I had only been to a few sessions before you came back, when the dreams got bad, like Reid's last night."

"Tell me about them," Emily implored.

"No, it's in the past now," he shifted away from her.

"You may have said Doyle's in the past, but if you still have those nightmares now then they're still an issue," she told him gently.

"I don't still have them, they ended the minute you walked into the conference room; today was just a reaction to Reid's nightmare." He swallowed, drawing her back to him. "Sometimes I'd be in the corner of the room watching you be with him, watching him touch you." He sighed, closing his eyes briefly. "Sometimes I used to dream of Doyle stabbing you over and over again with that table leg, you would die in my arms; other times I would be sitting with you in the hospital, waiting for you to wake up so I could tell you how I felt." The moonlight caught the tear as it slid down his cheek. Emily reached up to brush it away.

"We know all too well about the monsters that lurk in the darkness, for every one we arrest there are still ten out there," Emily told him, pausing before continuing wondering how he would take her confession. "When I went undercover, I despised Doyle, hated him for the things he did without a conscience. The way he was with Declan, it made me bond with him, all he wanted was to protect his son and make a good life for him; but Doyle's version of a good life was to make sure he grew up to be just like him. I had to do whatever I could to get Declan away from that and protect him." Emily took a deep breath before continuing

"When you're deep undercover, things become blurred and I admit that my feelings for Doyle were confusing; my time in London has helped me deal with that, getting closure on that time in my life. I hate that man for the pain he has caused everyone, especially you. But I want you to know I have no confusion about my feelings for you." Emily propped herself up on her hand, drawing back to look him in the eye.

"With one look you make me feel safe and loved. It takes you a while to trust people, but soon after we met, you showed your trust in me by revealing your fears and private thoughts about cases, and it made me trust you in return. You accepted me for all of my quirks. You're just as stubborn as I am, but that's part of what makes you a great agent; you don't let things go until they're resolved.

"When I was in Paris, I kept thinking about you in that warehouse, refusing to let me go. I knew you would go after Doyle, desperately wishing you wouldn't. " She was crying along with him now, and he tightened his hold on her. "Coming home, I saw the damage I caused; I couldn't risk losing you a second time. Couldn't risk telling you how I felt. I needed you to be in my life, as a friend if nothing else."

Morgan's lips found hers with a kiss filled with emotions that her confession provoked in him. "And now?" He asked pulling back from her.

"I've fought my feelings for you for a long time. I still have those doubts, but I don't want to run away again. We need to be honest with each other, no matter how much we want to spare the other the hurt the truth may bring." Morgan's relief was evident on his face. "Promise me that when you take Spencer to the group, you will talk if you need to. If not to me, then to someone." He nodded, before swallowing the lump in that formed in his throat.

"I love you," he confessed, kissing her lightly on the lips. Pulling back he could see the whites of her eyes as they widened slightly at his admission. They may have talked about love, but neither of them had said those three little words, till now. "I didn't say it to hear it back," Morgan reassured her, he worried he'd said too much too soon.

Overcoming her shock, her lips crashed to his as she pushed them so she was lying on top of him. Pushing herself so she sat across him, bracing herself on her knees, sheets pooling at her waist. "I'm scared," Emily whispered as she looked down at him.

"Of what?" Returning her gaze, Morgan stroked the bend of her knee with his fingers.

"Of not being what you need."

"You're all that I need," he whispered as he moved his hands to her back to pull her down to him, running his hands over her back.

Emily allowed herself to be pulled down, pausing when there was a barely any space between them. "I love you," she whispered against his lips.


	12. Chapter 12

Author Note – thank you all for your wonderful words, they really do help with keeping me focused on this. Having said that I am going to take a short break from posting for about a week, as I'm on holiday from work and organizing a family gathering for this weekend, I just wanted to post this short chapter before I did. Hopefully I will get a chance to spend some time writing, I just won't be posting it yet. There are spoilers for the episode Restoration in this chapter.

Second chances – chapter twelve

July 2013

"How was group?" Emily asked. She had been back in London for two long weeks. Ever since parting at the airport, she and Morgan had spent more time on the phone talking to one another. Confessing their love for one another had deepened their already close connection. Morgan had taken Spencer to the group, staying with him for support. Spencer had sat back and listened to the group the first week, trying gage the other people.

Amy had gone on maternity leave a week ago, and her replacement, Deidre, was already starting to grate on Emily's nerves. Looking through the computer screen at Morgan, she felt the weariness give way to excitement.

"It was okay," Morgan started. "Reid spoke tonight, said a few things he hadn't said to me." He rubbed the back of his head. He looked exhausted.

"What about you?" Emily wondered. She was glad Spencer was opening up about his grief, he needed to start healing.

"I didn't speak," Morgan admitted. Emily looked at him in question, knowing there was more he needed to tell her, he seemed so distant, almost fragile as he spoke. Emily began to worry, frown forming as he spoke again. "We got back from Chicago today. Carl Buford is dead."

"What happened?" Penelope had called her and said they were on a case and Morgan couldn't make contact because they were against the clock, but Emily had never imagined it was anything to do with Buford.

"He was found in the washroom, strung up with sheets as a noose. The Warden is putting it down to suicide." Morgan looked doubtful.

"He didn't seem like the type of man who would take his own life."

"He wasn't." He paused as he averted his gaze, contemplating something.

"Derek?" Emily called out to him. His eyes swung back to hers. "We promised to be honest to one another."

Morgan nodded his head, rubbing the back of his head. He took a deep breath. "When he was my coach, he molested me." Emily closed her eyes briefly. She had always suspected that Buford had abused Morgan. Now her suspicions had been confirmed, her hatred for the man escalated. Opening her eyes, focusing on Morgan, she saw how lost and childlike he seemed.

"Do you want to tell me about it?" He closed his eyes, obviously trying to shut out the images in his head. Her heart ached for him, wanting to hop on a plane to be with him, to help ease his pain.

"Honestly?" Morgan asked, echoing their promise to one another, opening his eyes. She nodded yes. "No, I don't want you to know that side of me. I didn't want anyone too." He paused. "I told the rest of the team what he did to me. I allowed them to use me as the basis of the victim profile…" He proceeded to tell her everything that had happened in Chicago.

Later they sat opposite each other, tear streaks on both their faces. "He gave me such a long list of names."

Emily swallowed the lump in her throat. She wanted to reassure him, but knew his guilt riddled brain wouldn't allow it. "I wish I could be there with you. I'm sorry I can't be." She whispered to him.

"I know," he told her gently. "But I'm kind of glad you aren't. I need some time by myself; to think." Emily empathised with him, she didn't feel rejected; he needed his own space to sort things out in his head. "I'm going to go to the house I'm restoring this weekend, try and do some work on the shutters." She knew it helped him think, to work through his frustrations.

Morgan grew quiet as they looked at each other through the screen. After a few minutes, Morgan scrunched his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I just feel ashamed," he told her, eyes still shut. "That I let him do that to me."

"Morgan," the sound of her voice made him open his eyes. "He was an adult who abused the trust you placed in him." Emily knew that where his mind was, there was little she could do to comfort him. "Our experiences, good and bad, make us who we are. You returned to that centre every year to make sure those young men knew they had someone to turn to if they needed to. You're a good guy; fiercely loyal, protective, caring, loving, you put others needs before your own."

"How do you do it?" Morgan asked her.

"Do what?" Emily was confused.

"Make me feel better," he told her sincerely. She flushed a little, having no idea what to say.

Feeling a little more relaxed, he felt the tiredness begin to set in, physical and emotional. Glancing at the time on the screen he realised what time it was her side of the Atlantic. For the first time he noticed the dark circles under her eyes. "Thank you, Emily."

"There's no need to thank me."

"You look tired," Morgan told her.

"I'm fine, long week," she sighed.

"Now who's breaking the honesty rule?" He asked her.

"Intel isn't coming fast enough for Easter," she sighed. There had been a heated argument about the undercover agents and Emily had told him she wasn't going to put any more pressure on them while they were in that situation, saying they needed to keep a clear head. Easter had made a comment about how she had been a great undercover agent, and maybe she could reprise the role briefly, that obviously the agents needed guidance in undercover work. Ever since, she had been trying to think of other things she could do to remedy that situation before it came to that.

Morgan watched her for a moment, seeing her inner battle play out across her face, trying to think of a way to help her. "I really don't like that guy," the words slipped out to bring her attention to him.

"I don't either. He may want me to go into the field," Emily admitted. Morgan immediately understood the implications of what she said, sitting up straighter. Emily regretted telling him, she didn't want to add this to his turmoil.

"Do you need to?"

"I don't know," she sighed. "It's just taking longer than we thought, and he's getting impatient. He thinks that as an experienced agent, I may be able to fix that."

Morgan had no idea what to say, he hated the idea of her in the field without him there to back her up, but he wanted to be supportive if it came to that, knowing she may not have another option. Seeing her frustration of trying to figure out what to do, he wanted to help. "Take a step back."

Her eyes snapped to his, and her gaze softened as he continued. "Get some sleep, and get a fresh start in the morning or mid-morning because the sun's starting to rise there." Morgan saw from where she sat on the window seat, the sun was starting to rise over her shoulder. They had been talking for hours.

Emily turned to look at the rising sun and groaned. Looking back at him she was grateful he understood. "Goodnight Princess," Morgan said.

"I love you," she said giving him a small smile. "Night Morgan."

"I love you too; I'll speak to you later." She covered the big yawn with her arm, and he laughed at her lightly. Emily responded by sticking her tongue out at him, making him laugh again as they disconnected.


	13. Chapter 13

Author Note – Okay, I'm back, my weekend plans got cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances and I needed to distract myself which is why I'm posting now . I ended up writing this chapter in three different ways, all with different endings; I hope I chose the right one to use. Let me know what you think.

Second Chances – chapter thirteen

October 2013

The ambulance sped away from the scene, trying to get its passenger to the hospital as fast as possible, and the paramedics within were trying to stop the blood pouring out of the bullet wound. Sirens were blazing and the streets were filled with residual murkiness from the smoke bombs they had used at the beginning of the attack.

The suspects were being led away to separate waiting vans, some shouting abuse and threats towards the people who had gathered from neighbouring houses to watch the dawn raid. Forensic teams were ready to secure the house and start collecting the evidence.

Emily gasped as the stretcher she was on hit the A and E doors, while she argued with the paramedics who were handing her over to the waiting doctors. "It's just a graze, I don't need hospital treatment. You need to concentrate on the other agent."

"Ma'am you need to calm down, my colleagues are dealing with his injuries," the nurse who started walking beside the stretcher argued back. "The bullet grazed your upper thigh, and you have a nasty gash to the head. There's a possibility of concussion." Emily lifted her hand to her head; pulling it away she could see the blood. "Have you ever had a concussion before?"

Emily felt the nausea come over her as she nodded to the nurses question. "A few years ago." The doctor and nurse were talking but Emily drowned them out as she stared at the blood on her hand. In the back of her mind Emily felt the need to contact Derek to tell him she was alive, he would worry until he heard her voice, maybe until he held her. She found herself craving that contact.

She came out of her trance as she felt the nurse start to wipe the blood off of her hand. Emily vaguely heard the nurse mentioning stitches and the possibility of being kept in for observation, but she didn't say anything in return as they began treating her wounds, her thoughts drifting back to the house this morning.

A month after talking to Morgan, Emily had been integrated into the undercover operation at Easter's insistence. Their suspects had organised a meeting with one of their suppliers when Emily was with them. The supplier had taken one look at Emily and started waving his gun around, accusing them of setting him up. Emily didn't recognise him; he'd had plastic surgery to change his appearance, but apparently he'd been one of the men who had done business with Doyle. He had gone off the grid, or at least that's what he had told her.

As he had grabbed Emily by the hair to fling her into another room, one of her agents had managed to get the distress signal out. A few minutes later the first smoke bomb came through the window, and he'd fired at Emily as she jumped out of the way, the bullet only just making contact. He'd kept firing into the fog and one of the other agents was hit in the shoulder.

Emily was brought back to the present by the sound of Amy's voice coming from the other side of the white curtain.

"I'm looking for Emily Prentiss; she was brought in by ambulance to be treated for a gunshot wound to the thigh. I believe she may have hurt her head."

"Are you family?" She heard a member of staff ask.

"My name's Amy Stevens, she's my daughter's godmother." That was news to Emily, she had been undercover when Amy had gone into labour, and so she had yet to meet the new born. "Also, I've been on the phone with her emergency contact, who's in America and has asked me to update him on her status. In her records you will find Derek Morgan listed."

Emily heard the taps on the keyboard as they verified Amy's story. "We've spoken to Mr Morgan and there's a note tagged to her file that you were coming. She's right behind that curtain there." Seconds later the curtain was pushed back, revealing Amy and the stroller. Emily realised she hadn't noticed the nurse leaving.

"Miss me?" Amy asked taking in the sight before her. When she'd seen the television reports of the raid, Amy had recognised her boss getting into one of the ambulances. She had tried to phone Derek herself but had been put through to the technical analyst for his team, who had said he was en route to Milwaukee, but she could get a message to him.

Amy's phone started ringing five minutes after hanging up with Penelope. She could tell he was angry and worried, but trying to keep calm for her sake. Amy told him to take a deep breath, she would find out what was happening and call him back. Her husband had left for work, so she had to bring the baby to the hospital with her.

"What are you doing here Amy? I'm fine, I'll be out soon."

Amy ignored her question. "What happened?" Emily sighed and told her an abbreviated version of how she got her injuries; they were in an open accident and emergency area, and anyone could hear what they had to say. "Do you know what's going on with the other agent?" Emily asked.

"I saw the Director on my way in, he said they were non critical and they were about to start his debrief now as he's in a room. He also said they would be in to talk to you after they were finished." At that moment the baby decided to let them know she was still in the room. Amy moved to the stroller lifting the baby out, holding her close for a moment before holding her out to Emily expectantly. "I would like you to meet Annabel. Do you want a cuddle?"

Ignoring the pain in her back, Emily's arms were reaching out automatically for the baby. "She's beautiful Amy."

"I may be a little biased but I have to agree," Amy smiled. "It's a good thing you think so as well, seeing as I want you to be god mother." Emily's head snapped up from looking at the baby.

"Are you serious? What about your other friends?"

"I don't really have any other female friends. Well, none that I would want as god mother to my daughter." Amy's head tilted to the side as she watched Emily sit on the bed with Annabel in her arms. "Besides who else is going to teach Annabel how to dodge bullets, pick locks, and play poker as well as divulging the perfect hangover cure. Plus my mother in law loves the fact that you're a high ranking agent in Interpol, she's practically giddy over it." Emily laughed at her friends' explanation, knowing that Amy hated her mother in laws' need for propriety, before looking back down at the baby in her arms.

"What do you think about that Annabel? Want me to be your god mother?" The baby cooed back up at her.

"I think you two are going to get along like a house on fire," Amy told Emily. "Children suit you," she added as an afterthought.

They spent a few minutes talking, Amy having a calming effect on Emily. Easter poked his head around the curtain as Amy put the baby back in her stroller. "I'll leave you to debrief, I need to make a phone call anyway." She said looking at Emily pointedly.

Emily's eyes shifted between Amy and Easter, finally focusing on Amy as she said, "Can you tell him that I'll call him tonight?"

"He's on a case," Amy told her gently. "But I'll see if he's got a few minutes."

"Thank you, Amy." Emily was worried about calling him now; he didn't need to lose focus because of her. She followed Amy with her eyes as she pushed the stroller out of the room, her eyes shifting to Easter as they passed. He stood at the edge of her bed, looking her over.

"How are you?"

"Been better," she couldn't help the bitterness entering her voice. They had continued arguing about her involvement in the undercover aspect of the case until she had gone in.

"We had no idea where he was, he went underground after Doyle. We never knew he was involved, if we did I wouldn't have sent you in. I promise." Easter paused. "He was killed as we were taking him in, pulled a gun, and grabbed an agent as a human shield. A junior agent managed to get an angle and took the shot." Emily raised her eyebrow in surprise. Suicide by police; she was doubtful. "I know you're angry with me Love, so I've come with a peace offering."

Emily look turned expectant as she waited for him to continue, curious. "We found evidence in the house that they have ties to America, and that the FBI might have an interest in the information we found. In order of promoting interagency relations, I thought you may like to be the agent who liaises with their Counter Terrorism division." He gave her a pointed look. "As I recall it's just a few floors down from the BAU; thought your ex-partner may need to double check you're alive." Emily's mouth dropped with the implication. It was a huge peace offering; he must have heard about Morgan's visit and put the pieces together.

She was discharged a couple of hours later and had continued the debrief back at the office, before Easter had ordered her to go home to rest. Emily had no idea how Amy had known when to be at the office, but she was there to drive her home, staying to make her dinner. Afterwards she placed Emily's laptop in front of Emily to make the video call she had planned with Penelope. Minutes later Emily was face to face with Morgan, and he was silent as he catalogued the injuries he could see, his face unreadable even to her.

"The bullet hit your thigh?" He asked finally. At his neutral tone, Emily nodded and waited for him to get angry, to tell her about his frustrations, but it didn't come. Finally his face relaxed and Emily was able to read him; he looked lost, like he had no idea what to do. Emily could also see the guilt which she had seen in the year she had returned to the BAU, when he blamed himself for any of her injuries.

"It grazed me, I needed a few stitches but I'll be fine," she reassured him, trying to keep her own tone neutral. "It'll be another scar soon." She saw Morgan's eyes flash and she remembered their first night together.

"I like your scars, they remind me you're alive, healing," he whispered. "I really want to hold you right now."

"I want you here as well, but you've got a case." Emily decided not to tell Morgan about her visit, which Easter had scheduled for when she was cleared to travel, in case he wasn't home from Milwaukee, in case it was cancelled.

They talked for a few more minutes before Hotch called his name saying they had gotten a break in the case. Morgan looked at Emily apologetically. "I gotta go Emily, I love you."

"I love you, call me when you can."

"I will." He signed off and she was face to face with Penelope.

"Hey Pen, how are you?"

"Worried, you really need to stop having brushes with death My Love."

"Pen," Emily sighed. "My agents needed my help."

"I understand that, but my Dark Knight needs his Princess," she peered at Emily over the rim of her glasses.

"I know that's why I need your help."

Four days later, Penelope was decorating her office for Halloween when there was a knock at her door. "Enter at your own peril," she called to the person on the other side.

"Hi Pen," Emily greeted as she entered. She had been cleared for travelling the day before and put straight on a plane. When they had talked the other day, Emily had told Penelope she was coming home for a short visit, asking her for help when she arrived. It had taken all of Penelope's will power not to tell anyone Emily was on her way.

"Oh we don't have long; everyone is on their way back from Milwaukee," she said taking the bag Emily offered her. They walked to the BAU bullpen, and Emily felt nostalgia wash over her as her eyes landed on her old desk. Looking closer, she smiled as she saw JJ's name on it. Emily glanced around and found Alex's name on Morgan's old desk.

Passing Penelope the other bag she held and the tray of coffees, Emily opened her shoulder bag, pulling out some items. Emily placed the container of vitamins on Spencer's desk as well as a King chess piece, from where he'd won their cyber game a few weeks ago; on JJ's name plate she placed a small Tinkerbelle figurine as well as a shot glass.

Making their way up the stairs they came to Morgan's door and Penelope could barely contain her excitement. Emily shot her an amused expression, to which she replied, "I can't help it, and I just know how happy they're going to be that you're home for a visit when they get back. Morgan's going to be over the moon."

Emily couldn't help the smile as she thought of Morgan. Opening the door to his office, she walked to the other side of the desk as Penelope's phone beeped. "That was JJ, they're about to get on the elevator. She wants to have lunch."

Emily grabbed one of the coffees off of the tray and placed it on the desk attaching a post it note. She managed to make it to the spare elevator as the other one opened, Penelope waving at her as the door closed.

Penelope stood there, switching her small wave to the team as they looked at her strangely, before departing the elevator. As they made their way to the bullpen, Penelope felt her excitement rise as she anticipated their reaction to Emily's presents. She saw Morgan check the pocket that held his phone twice in that short walk.

Morgan left the others behind in the bullpen as he continued to his office, slumping down in his chair, looking in confusion at the coffee cup as he grasped the post it note to read what it said.

'_Was wondering if I could be your Halloween honey this year? I'm meeting with Counter Terrorism, wait for me in your office, Em x'_

She was here, he thought to himself. Relief washed over him that Emily would be with him that evening, that he would be able to see for himself she was still alive. Closing his eyes, he allowed the anguish of the last few days to drain away; he'd been on edge since he'd received the phone call he'd been dreading from the hospital. Everyone had tiptoed around him, including Hotch. After apprehending the suspect Morgan had needed space, taking a seat on a low wall outside the precinct while the others had finished handing over to the locals, when Reid approached him with a cup of coffee and they had sat in silence while they drank; Morgan finding comfort in his presence.

Laughter from the bullpen drew his attention. Grabbing his coffee, he went see what everyone found so funny. Leaning over the railing he took a sip, and caught Rossi's eye from where he stood at the bottom of the stairs.

The older man looked up, eyes twinkling, away from JJ and Spencer holding their gifts. He gestured to JJ. "I think we found out who the Green Fairy sponsor was."

The blonde looked at them, a huge smile on her face. "You know what? I'm not gonna feel guilty, the night before is well worth the morning after."

That evening, Morgan was closing his front door to the last of the trick or treaters, and returned to the living room. Standing beside the sofa Morgan watched as the light from the fire flickered along Emily's long legs as she lay on the sofa in nothing but the shirt Morgan wore to work and her underwear, the buttons undone but not revealing. His gaze travelled the length of her body, pausing at the small bandage that was still on her thigh, continuing up past her panties, following the gap between the shirt panels to her belly button towards the valley between her breasts and finally meeting her eyes.

Emily lifted her hand to intertwine their fingers, and Morgan sat on the edge of the sofa as she placed their hands over her heart. "I'm right here."


	14. Chapter 14

Author Note – I wanted to say thank you for all the lovely comments, they made a less than brilliant weekend so much better. Just to assure you and myself, the last chapter wasn't the end. I've got a long way to go, Emily's not completely home yet, still just visiting. I've got something else planned for when she does come home. Hope I can continue to do my ideas justice. If you're a minor skip the first part of this chapter. I thought about editing the M rated stuff out, but I hit three-oh tomorrow so I decided to include it. As usual, I've put flashbacks in italics.

Second Chances – chapter fourteen

December 2013

"_Spend Christmas with me in Chicago." Morgan asked her through the webcam._

"_You want me to meet your family?" Emily's eyes widened as the panic began to course through her._

"_Come home with me Emily."_

They barely made it through the hotel room door before they started tugging on each other's clothes. They had met at O'Hare and the cab journey and the proceeding elevator ride had been excruciatingly long for both Morgan and Emily. Their lips crashed together, trying to convey how much they had missed each other during the weeks apart. Morgan pressed her up against the wall, placing a kiss beside her ear before whispering, "God I've missed you."

"I love you," Emily responded before capturing his lips with hers again, her hands pushing his jacket off his shoulders then returning to his back to pull his shirt out of his trousers and over his head, her fingers grazing his chest before she started to work on her own clothes. He chuckled at her impatience, and moved his hands to help her. She had left a few days after Halloween and it had been a long eight weeks since; teasing each other through the webcam, and whispering promises over the phone.

"_When are you moving home?" he asked partly joking, partly serious._

"_You could move here," was her immediate reply. After a moment she asked in a quiet voice, "So kids are a part of our future?" a small smile gracing her features, a spark of hope igniting in her stomach._

"_Hopefully," he said with a smile mirroring hers. "Besides, if we can't conceive, then we'll have fun trying," Morgan waggled his eyebrows suggestively, making her laugh._

"_That we can," she answered with a laugh. Their gazes locked for a minute in an intense stare and Emily felt the tingle she always did whenever he touched her. She could almost feel his hands on her._

Moving to the bed, the back of Morgan's legs hit the mattress and he stumbled backwards, drawing Emily down on top of him. He quickly divested her of the rest of her clothes, his thumb brushing the small scar on her thigh as he pulled her panties down. Their lips met again as her hands moved to the buckle of his trousers, and she helped him pull them off along with his underwear.

They sighed into one another's mouths as they came together, his hands guiding her hips as she hooked an arm around his shoulders, her other hand coming up to cup his jaw as she kissed him. Emily's sigh turned into a whimper, her forehead dropping to his shoulder, as they set a quick pace as the anticipation that had built in the last few weeks was released in their lovemaking. Morgan moaned, his lips skimming her neck as he felt her nails clawing at his back.

He flipped them over, their movement becoming more frantic. Her legs wrapped themselves around him, pulling him deeper as he continued to thrust into her, her eyes widening at the sensation. He swooped down and covered her lips with his, silencing her whimpers. Morgan pulled back to watch her face contort with pleasure as they drew closer and closer. One powerful thrust sent Emily over the edge, as she screamed his name, triggering Morgan's climax.

Panting as they came down from their release, he kissed her again, gentler than last time. Pulling back he saw the desire in her eyes. "Hi," Emily whispered with a small smile, pecking his lips.

"That's one hell of a hello," he teased and she blushed, her face partially obscured by her hair and he brought a hand up to brush it out of the way. Emily craned her neck to kiss him again.

"I've missed you," she stated. They moved themselves to lie back against the pillows, drawing the covers up over them to protect them from the slight chill, their hands caressing each other lightly, and a comfortable silence overcoming them, their eyes never leaving the others. Emily broke the silence. "Your mom must be mad at you," she stated.

He gave her a quizzical frown before responding. "What are you on about? I'm visiting for a week." They had decided to spend a week in Chicago before flying to DC to see in the New Year with the rest of the team, when Morgan returned to work. Emily had to be back in London by January third.

"Don't you usually stay at home?" She enquired.

"Well I wanted you all to myself for a while before my family gets to you."

"Not that I don't want to miss any time with you, but I don't want them to think that I'm depriving them of time with you. I mean you were saying the other day that your mom wanted us to stay with her."

"Well, she lives in a small apartment with thin walls. And neither of us, and by us I mean you, is that quiet." Emily's mouth gaped at his words, which she couldn't deny.

"I'm not the only one who's loud during sex," she argued.

"Oh really?" His eyebrow rose, issuing the challenge.

"You need to take some responsibility for the noise, considering you're the one making me scream." He laughed at her reasoning, kissing her deeply again, both of them groaning when they pulled back.

"Truthfully, I wanted us to have some space to ourselves. This is a big step for both of us; I didn't want either one of us getting overwhelmed." Morgan lay back on his pillow, placing his arm around her to pull her so she was partly lying on his chest. "I mean I've never brought anyone home to meet my mother," he admitted.

"_You want me to come home with you at Christmas? To meet your family?" She clarified._

"_You already met them, Em."_

"_That was years ago, and we were colleagues then not lovers."_

Emily couldn't help but feel a bit more relaxed that he was as worried as her. The thoughts that his mother and sisters wouldn't approve weighed heavily on her mind, would they disapprove of their long distance relationship, or her past actions. Emily had replayed in her head the short conversation she's had with Fran Morgan when she had first joined the team a hundred times since Morgan had asked her to come to Chicago with him.

"Don't worry, my Mama loves you," Morgan's voice broke through her thoughts.

"She doesn't know me," Emily argued quietly, trying to push back the memory that most of her friends' mothers had deemed her a bad influence during her teenage years.

"She always asks how you are, ever since you first met. She said you reassured her, reigning Reid in with his statistics, how you were trying to find information to help me," Emily looked down at her hand caressing the skin above his heart, feeling him press his lips to her forehead. "Just be warned that as soon as the baby photos come out, I'm going to be dragging you out of there."

"Baby photos?" Emily started to tease, lifting her eyes to meet his, laughing at his expression and she felt much more relaxed than she had a few moments ago. "There's no way you're dragging me away from those Buddy," she laughed at him, eyes twinkling, she moved so she was lying on top of him, her chin balanced on her hands crossing his chest, moving her legs so she straddled him. Her laugh was infectious and Morgan found himself laughing along with her.

Emily pushed herself to so she could touch his lips with hers, her hips tilting and she could feel him becoming aroused again. Emily moved slightly, gasping as she felt him enter her.

Shooting him a predatory smile, she whispered, "Let's see how loud I can make you be." His groan filled her ears, as he pushed himself up to meet her lips.

The next day she found herself in the Morgan's living room, watching the interaction between Morgan, his mother and his sisters. All too soon for Emily's liking they stopped fussing over him and turned their attention to her.

"So Emily how's your assignment in London going?" Fran Morgan asked.

"It's, uh, going really well. It's been a busy eighteen months, but I enjoy it," Emily replied shyly. She couldn't help but search the older woman's eyes for a flash of disapproval, but found none, only acceptance.

"Have you had much chance to explore the city?" Derek's sister, Sarah, asked.

"A bit," Emily replied, as she tried to calm her own nerves. "My friend drags me around when we're not working."

At the mention of Amy, Morgan's attention turned away from putting their presents under the tree. "How are Amy and Annabel?"

Emily gave a toothy grin in response as she reached into her pocket for her phone. Proudly showing him the picture of the baby in the outfit Emily had bought her for Christmas. "They're good." Fran and his sisters were curious, and they craned their heads to look at the screen. Emily swung it so they could see, as she explained "Annabel is my god daughter."

"You trying to compete with Garcia in the fairy god mother position?" Morgan asked as he joined her on the sofa.

"Not a chance, but saying that, that little bundle has got me wrapped around her little finger," she smiled at him and their eyes locked, a silent conversation between them.

"Do you want children Emily?" Fran asked, putting a voice to the thoughts that were going through both their minds. They swung their heads towards Fran, Emily sputtered as Morgan responded.

"Mama," he drawled, slightly embarrassed, partly warning. Emily felt her palms begin to sweat.

"Don't 'Mama' me," Fran replied. "I want grand babies." Morgan started to shake his head; he had known this was coming.

"I would love to have children," Emily stated, she felt Morgan take her hand and she was reassured by the gesture, giving her confidence, they had already had this discussion. "But we're nowhere near ready for that yet. When we are, I would like to be living in the same country."

Fran heard Emily's hesitation and accepted the answer, letting the discussion drop. She had learnt a long time ago with her husband that jobs in law enforcement didn't allow for much time with loved ones. "When do you have to be back in London?" She asked instead of the one of the other questions running through her mind.

"On the third," Emily replied sadly. Though she was liaising with Counter Terrorism, she was also co-ordinating the investigation and the continued interrogations in London. Morgan's family nodded understandingly.

Fran noticed Emily was still a little uncomfortable. Wanting to talk to the woman who was so special to her son, she looked at her watch, realising the time. "I need you kids to take that cake down to Mrs Smith. She wants to see all of you before you all disappear again. I'm going to stay here and sort dinner." Her three children got up to do as she asked. Morgan looked at Emily expectantly.

"Uh, I'm going to stay and help your mother," Emily told him. Morgan started to laugh and turned to his mother.

"Mama, don't let her near the food. It's a really bad idea."

"I can cook," Emily protested. Morgan laughed louder as she pouted up at him.

"Derek, I think Emily is more than capable of helping me." With his mother's words Morgan stopped laughing at Emily, but he was still smiling.

"It's a really bad idea, Mama," he said as he dodged the hand Emily swung at his butt. He grasped her moving hand and used it to pull her up off the sofa, kissing her lightly, before joining his sisters who were making faces from the doorway.

The door clicked shut and the two women stared at each other for a moment. "So, uh, what can I do to help?" Emily asked breaking the silence.

"You can help me with the vegetables," Fran replied as she led the way to the kitchen. As they got to work, Fran started to talk. "So, can you cook?"

Emily looked into her gently teasing eyes, Morgan's eyes, before confessing, "Only toast."

Fran nudged her elbow gently with hers, leaning conspiratorially. "I won't tell him, as long as you don't tell him I showed you this." Emily followed Fran's finger as she pointed at a picture on her fridge. A young Derek Morgan, about four years old, lay in the bath tub, surrounded in bubbles smiling at the camera. Emily smiled at the sight.

"I won't," Emily replied, her smile becoming a thoughtful look.

Unable to keep her silence, Fran asked. "What's wrong Sweetheart?"

"Uh, nothing," Emily tried to lie. Fran raised an eyebrow, reminding her yet again of Derek, and Emily shook her head. "You're so much like Morgan," Emily told her. Fran smiled at her, a little confused.

"Not many people make the comparison Sweetheart. They say he's more like his father."

"People may say that because he was cop, but he's as perceptive as you are. You would've made a good profiler," Emily told her, not really sure if now was the time for them to have this conversation. Taking a deep breath, she continued. "I wasn't lying when I said I wanted children, but I may not be able to have them." Emily allowed that to sink in.

Fran didn't know what to say. Her confusion showed on her face as Emily spoke again. "There was a lot of damage when I was attacked, and when the doctors repaired it they gave me a small chance of carrying to term." A tear escaped as she thought of the smaller version of Derek that she may never be able to provide him with.

"_There are other options Em," _Morgan had told her when they had the same conversation weeks ago after she had shown him a picture of Annabel.

Fran drew the younger woman into a hug, holding on tight. Leaning back, she took Emily's hands in her own, urging her to raise her eyes up to look at her. "Emily," Fran started, "do you know when I knew Derek was falling for you?" Emily shook her head. "He rang me up; it was a short while after you had been here. I asked how all of you were, and he told me you were Vonnegut fan. There was something in the way he said it, and I knew back then that you were special." Fran reached up and wiped the tear escaping from Emily's eye.

"Now Sweetheart, I would love to have mini versions of you and Derek running around, but if that never happens then you two can have a lot of fun trying." Emily's eyes were wide with embarrassment at the older woman's words, making Fran laugh. "What? You think I don't know why you two are staying at a hotel."


	15. Chapter 15

Author Note – This chapter had me stumped, I think I looked at a blank screen for about two days before I wrote anything and the stuff I started to write I wasn't fond of, so I revisited the start of my stories to get inspiration, where it was just Morgan and Spencer talking. There's a bit of angst here, and a time and space jump.

Second Chances – chapter fifteen

February 2014

Morgan leant his head on the back of his chair, closing his eyes as he put his phone away. He heard the hesitant footsteps getting closer to his door. Hearing them stop at the open doorway, a tentative knock followed. Morgan knew the person at his door was watching him, cataloguing his movements.

He rolled his head to the side. Allowing his eyes to open, Morgan locked gazes with Spencer. Morgan gestured for him to cross the threshold. Pausing before he entered the office Spencer took the sight in before him. He took a small step, speaking as he did so. "Are you okay?" Spencer asked gently.

Morgan sighed before answering. "Not really." He breathed heavily for a minute before continuing. "It's Valentine's day, Kid. Now I've never been one to celebrate that kind of thing and neither has Emily." His eyes closed again. "But we're so damn busy at the moment; all we get is a five minute phone call."

Spencer gulped as he nodded his head in understanding. "I'm not as good with emotions as I am with behaviour, so I fall back on facts and statistics to help me deal with those situations. Did you know there are a hundred and ninety six million roses produced for Valentine's Day?"

"Emily doesn't like roses, she prefers gerberas or daisies." Spencer looked at him expectantly. "It was a couple of weeks after JJ left, and Emily and Penelope were meeting JJ to go shopping. I was in the florist when I saw them looking at the displays outside," Morgan's lips lifted slightly at the memory. "Baby Girl was pointing at these bright red roses. While Emily stood there shaking her head, laughing at whatever she was saying. Penelope turned to her, obviously asking which her favourite were and Em turned and pointed at the gerberas."

"Did you approach them?"

"Nah," Morgan said as he recalled the reason he was at the florist. "Uh at the time, I was trying to deny any and all feelings I had for Emily; it felt wrong to tell her I was picking up flowers for a date. So I waited till they left to leave." Morgan groaned as he realised something. "I forgot to send her flowers today."

"As you said before, Emily doesn't acknowledge things like Valentine's day. I don't think receiving flowers on a day she doesn't recognise as important would matter to her. To her receiving flowers would mean more to her on a day that was significant to both of you."

Morgan nodded his head, realising Spencer was right. Still he would be apologising to Emily when he spoke to her tomorrow. "For someone who doesn't deal well with emotions, you do a pretty good job."

"I think dealing with my feelings towards Maeve's death has helped."

Morgan nodded along with Spencer's statement. They had been going to the group sessions together for eight months and he was doing well, slowly gaining his confidence back. Morgan had spoken a few times when he was dealing with the fallout from Buford. The nightmares were finally fading away.

"When Maeve died, I stopped doing things that I associated with my routine with her. I would talk to her on Sunday morning and then go to the park to play chess. The only game I played since her death was with Emily." Spencer took a deep breath. "I'm going to start going to the park, I may not play for a while yet, but it's a start."

"Do you want me to come with you?" Morgan asked.

"No," Spencer stated. "I'm grateful for everything you've done for me, but I need to do this part on my own. I still want to carry on the group sessions though, if you still want to come."

Morgan leant forward, clasping his hands on the desk in front of him. "Of course, you know that I'm always here to listen, don't you?"

"I know, the same goes for you. Whenever you need to talk." Spencer's lip quirked slightly as he thought of something. "Who'd of thought that I would be giving Derek Morgan relationship advice?"

Morgan cracked a smile. "Don't get a head of yourself Kid." The quirk developed into a full blown smile. "Thanks."

…..

April 2014

There was a bunch of gerbera daisies waiting for her on her desk when she re-entered after her meeting with the prosecutors. She smiled sadly at them, there was no card but Emily knew who had sent them. A year ago today, Morgan had arrived in London. A year ago today they had made love for the first time.

They had both been so busy and were unable to celebrate their one year anniversary together. Emily felt the need to call him, but he was in Detroit on a case and she would wait for him to contact her. The terror cell was going to be put on trial the next week, and she was working with prosecution for the court case.

Morgan had been called away on a case on New Year's Day, before Emily had gotten on the plane to return. They didn't have much chance to say goodbye. Commitments at Interpol had meant she hadn't been home since the New Year, as Easter wanted her to focus on the interrogations using her profiling techniques because all of Interpol's interrogators had come up with nothing.

Emily had realised that three of the four wouldn't talk. However, one of them had broken their silence and made a deal in exchange for solitary confinement, leading Emily's team to a few other cells around Europe, but nothing on the American cells which the FBI were investigating. Emily had hated the fact they had to make the deal, but Easter had been the one to make that decision.

Emily sat slumped in her chair looking at the flowers, picking one out to smell it. She couldn't recall telling Morgan they were her favourite, but Pen or JJ may have told him. A knock on her door made her look up to see Amy stood in her doorway, smiling sadly.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

"You're talking to someone who knows what today is."

Emily put the flower back in the vase, her finger lingering on a petal. Looking up at Amy, she saw nothing but support in her eyes. "I miss him; we haven't been in the same room for four months, and we can't be together today." Amy sat opposite her. "I wasn't naïve when we started this; I knew it was going to be difficult. But I have never been in a relationship that has lasted this long, nor have I ever been with someone who knows me as well as Morgan does. Sometimes it gets overwhelming."

Amy frowned. "Do you regret starting this side of your relationship with Derek?"

"No," Emily stated with certainty. "We both fought our feelings for a very long time, I lost count of the moments when we would share a look, and it felt like he could see the real me and I could see him, and we would it let pass because the bigger picture was more important. Sometimes I think for all that sacrifice he deserves so much more than this situation can offer him."

"You both do," Amy said sadly. She glanced at clock on the wall. "Why don't you take a walk, to clear your head? You've got a busy afternoon." She told her gently.

Emily shook her head, sighing. "I can't. I've got to go through this before the meeting this afternoon," she said indicating the file in front of her.

"Well, I've got to pop to the shop, can I get you anything?"

"No, I'm going to grab a cup of tea in a minute." Amy made her way to the door. "Oh and Amy," Amy turned to her. "Thank you, I'm just reacting to not seeing Morgan for four months."

Amy smiled sympathetically, tilting her head slightly. "Always."

'_Always…'_ Emily felt the pang in her heart as her gaze drifted towards her phone, willing it to ring.

Hours later she opened her front door to the sound of music playing softly in her living room. Her hand moved to her hip to reach for her gun, only to realise she had taken it off before leaving the office. She could hear someone moving around in the living room. Her small dining table had been placed in front of the window seat, laid out with dinner for two, gerberas in a vase in the middle.

Walking into the room, she placed her bag and briefcase on the seat before shrugging off her coat. Emily reached out to stroke one of the petals. "You really thought I wouldn't be here today?" She heard him ask from behind her.

"I hoped, but everyone was telling me that you were on a case."

"Well I was supposed to be here yesterday, but we were still wrapping it up in Detroit so I asked Garcia to bump my ticket to a later flight. I almost missed it." He said as thought of the run he made after departing the BAU private jet to the departures desk to pick up his new ticket; making it just in time to his flight.

Finally turning to looking at Morgan, Emily smiled. "How did you get in?"

Morgan guiltily scratched the back of his head, looking down at the floor briefly before raising his eyes to hers. "Uh, Amy may have made a detour to the shop at lunch." Her smile got even wider at the mention of her friend, grateful she had a set of friends that cared about her enough to do this for her. "Dance with me?" Morgan asked, holding out his hand.

Emily accepted his hand and he pulled her to him. "Hi," she said, kissing him briefly. Emily's other hand coming to rest on his shoulder, while his free hand rested in the small of her back. "I never used to like surprises." She told him looking into his eyes.

"Happy anniversary," Morgan smiled at her. They were quiet as they swayed to the music, taking comfort in one another, trying to bridge the four month gap since they had last seen one another. Allowing the notes wash over her, Emily closed her eyes and leant her head on Morgan's shoulder, feeling his head coming to rest on hers lightly. It sounded familiar to her, but she couldn't quite place it.

"What's this music?" Emily asked, not opening her eyes.

His fingers stroked her back, making her shiver. "The last time we danced to it, we were at JJ's wedding." Morgan told her quietly. Her thoughts immediately drifted to that night. "Thought we should change the meaning from goodbye to hello."

Emily responded by kissing his collarbone lightly. "It's getting harder to say goodbye." She felt him swallow, keeping his silence.

They continued to dance for a few minutes, the song changing into another. "What's wrong Emily?" For a moment, Emily thought about denying anything was wrong. But she knew it was pointless. Burrowing her face further into the crook of his neck, she started to speak, her words muffled. "I didn't quite catch that Princess."

Emily turned her head slightly as she repeated her words, "I've been having doubts."

"What about?" He asked frowning, trying to crane his neck to look at her face. When she kept her silence, he stepped back as he questioned again, "What about Emily?"

"Are you sure you don't want a normal woman? Someone with a nine to five job, who lives in the same country; someone who sees you at least a couple of times a week, instead of a couple of times a year." Morgan could see the apprehension in her eyes. Uncomfortable with the situation, Emily looked down at the floor.

"Normal is boring," he said as his hand lifted her chin, bringing her eyes back to his. "I want you, but we both made commitments that means the only contact we have for a few months are on the phone or through a webcam then I'm willing to do that." Emily thought about what he had to say for a moment.

"I know that, but there's a part of me that thought we would be able to spend more time together. I'm just reacting to not seeing you for a while." Morgan leant down to gently kiss her. "Hopefully after the trial I will be able to take some time off," she told him as she pulled back.

"Is it selfish that I want you all to myself for that time?" He asked giving her his most flirtatious smile, making her laugh.

"No, maybe we should just get away for a weekend or something. Somewhere neutral, nothing to do with work or our homes," Emily suggested.

Morgan's smile turned into a smirk as he suddenly grasped her hand and twirled her back to him, making her laugh in surprise. "You know what I've always wanted to know about?" Emily shook her head. "Sin to Win," he said as her eyes widened in recognition. "With our promise of being honest with one another, I should be allowed to know what happens on those weekends."

Emily laughed again. "Okay, I'll take you to Atlantic City with me," she kissed him again, deeper this time. She leant her head against his shoulder again. "We'll be okay," she whispered into his neck. Morgan responded by tightening his hold on her.


	16. Chapter 16

Author Note – just a quick (short) update on Spencer, while I'm working on that sin to win weekend at the moment. Thank you for all of your lovely comments; let me know what you think.

Second Chances – chapter sixteen

June 2014

"_How's Spencer doing?" Emily asked. _

"_He's good; he started going back to the park to play chess." Morgan told her._

"_That's good. The group session are helping?" _

_Morgan smiled as he answered. "Yeah, they're helping a lot. He still thinks about her. But she no longer haunts his nightmares."_

He sat watching the others, predicting their moves. His hands itched to make the right moves when theirs made the wrong ones. But for the moment, he observed, learning their strategy, doing the same thing he'd been doing for four months.

Last week he'd watched his former chess student, Eric, beat one of the older, more experienced players. The opponent had left and Eric looked at him expectantly, wanting to see if his success could be replicated against Spencer. Spencer had approached from where he was leaning on the railing, his hand touching the back of the chair before he had turned and walked away.

He felt the bench beside him creek and he turned to see his former student sit next to him. They sat in silence for nearly half an hour, watching the other players.

"Why did you stop coming?" Eric asked quietly.

Spencer looked at his clasped hands for a moment, closing them as he spoke quietly. "I used to have a routine on Sundays. I would talk to a friend on the phone," his lips quirked into a smile. "We would talk about everything; books, friends, families, our lives. I was more intimate with her in that small amount of time on Sunday mornings than I had ever been with anyone. After talking to her, I would come here to play."

Going to the group sessions helped him to be honest with others about his inner most feelings and secrets, it was part of the pact he made with the rest of his group. The young man beside him had sought Spencer out, wanting to learn from him. Spencer hoped that his admission would help him in some way, someday, even if it was to tell people who were close to him how he felt.

"She died and I never got the chance to tell her that I loved her. I associated my Sunday routine with her, and I wanted to forget for a while." His breath was ragged. "It's taken me a while to realise that she would want me to continue living my life. I've been taking small steps to start doing the things I stopped doing after her death."

His student nodded along with him, sympathising with his friend's situation. Their attention returned to the games being played. Eventually one of the tables became free, and the student asked, "Do you want to play?" Spencer nodded, and his friend offered him a small smile in reassurance as he led the way to the table.

As the other man set up the game, Spencer glanced around; the hairs on the back of his neck standing up. He could feel the eyes on him. Glancing around at the observers, he saw a woman about his age, with mousey brown hair watching him intently. Their gazes locked for a moment, and her eyes widened, before she ducked her head for a moment. She shyly raised hers eyes to his after taking a deep breath, and he gave her a small smile, which she returned as he sat opposite his friend to start the game.

Six months later, she would approach his table after his opponent left, to play her first game.

"_Hi, my name is Helen, can I sit here?"_


	17. Chapter 17

Author Note – If you're a minor, skip to the end of this chapter. Just a warning that reading beyond this point will result in reading naughty things, not much happens except utter indulgence.

Second Chances – chapter seventeen

August 2014

The sounds of the slot machines whirled around him as he approached the check in desk. Signalling for the concierge, Morgan rested his forearms on the counter.

"Hi, my name's Derek Morgan, I have a room booked." The concierge looked it up on the computer, scrolling through the information. The man behind the counter looked up smiling.

"Ms Prentiss already checked in." He rooted around in the cubby-hole area under the counter, finally holding up a key card. "She requested that we have a spare key card ready for you. Room six thirty."

Morgan smiled, accepting the proffered card. "Thanks." He'd been running late when Emily called him to say she had arrived. Morgan had told her to check in and get some rest before he got there. He made his way to the elevator, pressing the button for the sixth floor. Stepping off the elevator, he found their room. Sliding the key card into the reader, the light turned green and he turned the handle to enter.

"Emily?" he called out as he entered the room. Morgan walked towards the large window the other side of the bed, appreciating the view for a moment before he noticed her bag on the bed. Put his own at the bottom of the bed, he saw her cardigan, then her jeans. Following the trail of clothes to the bathroom door, he heard the swirl of water.

Emily had heard the door open and Morgan call her name. But she kept her eyes closed waiting for him to find her. Her hand swirled in the water and the bubbles shifted slightly. She heard him drop his bag as he searched their room for her. After what seemed like an eternity, she heard the bathroom door creak open. Sensing his eyes on her from the door way, she allowed her own to open, locking gazes with Morgan. A seductive smile came over her face as she saw the hunger in his eyes.

"Hi," she whispered.

He smiled back, approaching the bath slowly, and his gaze drifting to the path of clothing she had left. Crouching down at the side of the bath, he reached out a hand to cup the side of her face. Emily mirrored his movement, by placing her hand on his face. She ran her thumb over his lower lip, and he kissed the pad lightly.

"How was the flight?" Morgan asked softly. Emily closed her eyes briefly.

"Long and tiring. I thought I would take a bath while I waited for you." She opened her eyes, a mischievous glint twinkling in them. "You do know we are barely going to leave the bedroom."

Emily laughed gently at his reaction; she loved making him blush. His smile got bigger as he finally moved in to kiss her on the lips, his lips barely making contact when she shook her head. "Uh, uh," Emily murmured against his lips, before pulling back as far as she could from him. "I want to see you take 'em off," gesturing to his clothes. "I want us to be even," she said looking down at herself.

His smile turned into a grin as he stood, taking a step back from the bath, his hands reaching for the top button of his shirt. Pausing he looked her up and down before bring his eyes back to hers. "Even? Princess all I see is bubbles."

Maintaining eye contact, Emily's eyebrow rose as she lifted the leg nearest to him and rested her foot on the side of the bath, exposing nothing else. He laughed, shaking his head at her antics. Morgan wondered what was in store for this weekend; after all he was following her lead. _'There's a whole other side to this woman…'_ God forgive him, but he wanted to know everything.

Emily followed the movements of his fingertips as he opened the buttons of his shirt one by one. She was trying to keep her composure, but as always in his presence she felt her usual self-control seep away as Morgan un-tucked the shirt and took it off, dropping it where she had finished her trail of clothing. Catching his gaze, Emily deliberately dropped her eyes to his belt buckle.

Taking the hint, his hands pulled the strap, undoing the buckle, lowering the zip. He pushed his trousers off, kicking off his shoes along with them, leaving him in only his boxers.

Looking at the sight before her, Emily allowed her eyes to linger on those chiselled abdominal muscles, biting her lip lightly before dropping her gaze to his boxers. Already having intimate knowledge of what was held within them, she locked gazes with him before nodding at the final barrier between them. Anticipation building inside of her, Emily watched as Morgan pushed them from his hips. Straightening up he stood before her, his arousal evident. Emily took a moment before beckoning him with her finger. She had wanted this initial encounter to last, wanting to tease each other into a frenzied state before finally coming together; but she knew she wouldn't be able to hold out much longer.

Morgan lowered himself into the bath opposite Emily. She was grateful the bath was deep and wide as the water shifted, only a little splashing over the sides of the bath onto the towels she had earlier placed at the base. She manoeuvred herself to be sitting astride him, their arms wrapping around one another, as their breath mingling briefly as they revelled in the feel of one another. She finally closed the distance between them, kissing him hungrily. When she felt his tongue grazing her lip, Emily immediately opened her mouth to him.

Emily heard herself moaning when she felt Morgan's fingers intertwine in her wet hair, holding her to him as they continued to kiss. Her hands moved to his face as her need for air became too much. Emily felt Morgan placing open mouthed kisses along her neck, moving his hands to her waist to shift her upwards as lips got lower and lower, nibbling along her collarbone. His lips continued their path down, finally capturing a nipple between his lips. She gasped as she felt his teeth graze the sensitive bud.

Feeling him throb beneath her, Emily stretched a little further upwards, her nipple slipping from his lips as she brushed against him. Emily felt the vibrations of his chest against hers as he moaned at her teasing; smiling wickedly at him as she swooped to capture his lips again. His fingers dug into her hips as he tried to pull her down on him. She pulled her mouth away from his, shaking her head. "Uh, uh," she whispered, placing a kiss by his ear, before taking the lobe between her teeth, tugging at it. Hearing his groan, she laughed gently. "Tell me what you want."

"You," he managed to get out, as his fingers tightened their hold, hard enough to leave marks.

She resisted their pull as she hovered above him, shifting her own hips; she was more than ready for him. She opened them again, finding herself looking into Morgan's eyes. "Then take me," she whispered, surrendering to his hands as they pulled her down onto him.

They both whimpered as they moved against one another, the water washing over them in time with their rhythm. They kissed deeply, their tongues duelling. Morgan's hands guided her to move faster on him. Emily ran her hands over his shoulders and back, her nails dragging along his skin.

"You're driving me crazy," Morgan panted as he pulled his lips away from hers.

She gave him a playful smile in response. "Touch me."

His laughter echoed in the bathroom. "I thought this was about what I wanted," he said jokingly as one of his hands moved to where they were joined.

Emily laughed as she pulsed around him, making him groan with the sensation. "It's about both of us." Morgan's other hand tangled itself in Emily's hair, pulling her face to his as their lips met again. Emily quickened her pace as she felt her peak drawing closer. Emily pushed herself down on him as she felt her climax hit her, causing her to clench and trigger Morgan's own release. As they shuddered against one another their cries resonated around them.

Emily stayed wrapped around him as they came down from their high, their kisses becoming languid, confessing their love to each other between kisses. Emily folded her arms around his shoulders, so they were pressed chest to chest, tucking her head into the crook of his neck, holding on tight. No one had ever provoked the feelings within her that Morgan did; sometimes the aftermath of their love making was overwhelming for her.

After a few minutes, Morgan reached for one of her hands, bringing her fingers to his lips. Kissing the slightly wrinkled skin, he said, "We need to get you out of the bath, you're starting to prune."

It was early evening when Morgan woke to the sound of a camera clicking. Sitting up, he heard the click again. The lights were turned on low in the bedroom, and he could see the illuminations from the other hotels shining in through the open curtains. Emily leant against the wall, pointing her phone at him taking another photo.

Seeing Morgan was awake through the screen Emily's face lit up with a dazzling smile as she quickly caught another photo.

"You know it's kind of disturbing when people take photos of you while you're sleeping," Morgan told her, sitting up, the sheets pooling at his waist.

"Well, I just got a message from Pen asking for a photo of the view from the window. I wasn't sure if she meant inside or outside the room, so I sent her both."

Morgan groaned as he flopped back onto his pillow, not sure if she was serious. The bed dipped slightly as Emily sat on her side. Turning his head he saw her stretched out beside him wearing only his shirt, her head propped up on her arm. "You know I thought this would be weekend would be different."

"It's only the first night, and we have four months to make up for," she reminded him gently, reaching out to stroke the side of his face. Morgan turned his face to press a kiss to her palm.

The last four months had been difficult for both of them. The team had lost Strauss to the Replicator. Even though she and Emily had never seen eye to eye; the older woman had become important to Dave, and in the end she had died trying to protect Emily's family, a sacrifice that Emily would be eternally grateful for. For Emily the trial had been tedious, eventually coming to an end in July with all members of cell being found guilty.

As Morgan shifted beside her, placing an arm over her waist to pull her closer, Emily placed a leg over his, her foot stroking the back of his leg and for the first time in months Emily felt at peace. She didn't want it to end. In that moment she made a decision.

She was coming home.


	18. Chapter 18

Author Note 1 – don't shoot me…

Second Chances – chapter eighteen

September 2014

Emily sat rocking Annabel on her lap as she listened to Amy say goodbye to the last of her guests in the hall way. It had been a lovely day for the baby's first birthday. Clyde appeared in the door way holding two glasses of wine and a pacifier dangling from a finger.

"Amy said this would help," he said putting the glasses on the table.

"She's a little young for wine isn't she?"

"Ever the comedian Love," Clyde said offering the pacifier to Annabel. Immediately the baby started sucking on the pacifier, sagging against Emily. "This is for Annabel; those are for you and Amy. You two get to have girl talk, while I get to put my little girl to bed."

"I have no idea how you two do it," Emily wondered out loud.

Clyde perched on the sofa next to Emily, reaching out to touch Annabel's cheek as she started to doze against Emily. "We don't talk about home at work and we don't talk about work at home. It's probably a good thing I'm not her immediate boss, otherwise we'd be arguing every night. I nearly had a heart attack when she bought Annabel to the hospital." He paused for a minute as he thought about his wife. "Amy never told me about you and Morgan, I knew how he felt about you when I kept tabs on his pursuit of Doyle." There was another pause. "Does he make you happy?"

Emily wasn't sure she wanted to discuss this with Clyde. After a moment she looked him in the eye, wondering if he was acting as her boss or her friend. "More than anything," she told him.

"You're going back to the States, aren't you?" Emily grimaced, hating the fact that Interpol didn't have the same rule about no inter-team profiling that the BAU had. She hadn't told anyone about her plans, not even Morgan; she didn't want to get his hopes up until she had finalised everything.

"I am." There was no point in lying to him, he would find out she was looking for a job in DC soon enough anyway. "You can't talk me out of it."

"I know," he sighed. "But I was wondering if you could wait for a few months." Emily frowned for a moment, before starting to shake her head. Clyde held up his hands in defence. "I have a job offer for you."

"In DC?" Emily questioned, interest piqued.

"George Morrissey who runs the DC office is retiring in March next year," he explained. "The job's yours, if you want it. I know it maybe longer than you're willing to wait, but the offer's there."

Emily was speechless. It was everything she wanted, where she wanted. She felt the urge to throw her arms around the man beside her, but Annabel squirmed in her lap making Emily tighten her hold. Pressing a kiss to the baby's head, she made eye contact with Clyde. "Yes," she choked out blinking back her tears of gratitude. "Thank you."

"Well, for all the crap I've put you through over the years, I figured I owed you. Doesn't hurt that you're brilliant at your job, either," he added.

"I thought I barred all business talk for today," Amy said from the doorway. Looking at Emily's watering eyes, she sighed. "What did you do? You made her cry," she asked her husband.

Clyde looked to Emily and Annabel for help, but only found Emily looking at him with a mischievous look in her eye. Figuring she would be no help, he reached for Annabel. "Those are happy tears by the way, I'll let Emily can explain. I'm going to do something I don't get to do often enough, and put our daughter to bed." He carried the baby to Amy, who kissed her chubby cheek before sharing a quick kiss with Clyde. "I will leave you two to it. Annabel and I have a date with the rocking chair and _The Wizard of Oz._"

"Good, because I want to hear all about Emily's naughty weekend away and Annabel's a bit too young for that."

"I think I am too," Clyde winked at his wife, before turning to Emily. "Don't give her any ideas."

"Good night Annabel," Emily waved at the baby as she looked back over her father's shoulder.

"Good night Aunt Emi," Clyde called as he left with the baby, making both women smile. Turning to Amy, Emily watched as her friend smiled as she kept her focus on the door for a moment.

"He's so different with you two," Emily commented as they listened to Clyde taking Annabel upstairs, talking softly to her.

"The paranoia still follows him home, though," Amy commented. At Emily questioning look, she explained. "He insisted I keep my maiden name when we got married; the house is in my name and Annabel's records are sealed. He doesn't want someone using us to get to him."

From personal experience, Emily could understand that, thinking of Doyle and everything she did to try to protect her family from him. She knew Clyde would do anything to keep Amy and Annabel out of harm's way. There were many times when Emily had been unable to trust the man that held her friend's heart, but they understood one another they had been through too much not to. She hoped she could trust him not to break Amy's heart.

"So do I need to yell at my husband?" Amy asked as she sat in the spot Clyde had just vacated, picking up the wine glasses, passing one to Emily.

Emily shook her head as she accepted the glass. "No," she said. "He, uh, offered me the DC office to run." Emily watched Amy for her reaction. For a moment Amy was still as Emily's explanation sunk in.

Amy held her glass out to Emily. "You're going home," Amy said sadly as they clinked glasses.

"I am," Emily smiled sadly. She really would miss Amy. "I made the decision when I was in Atlantic City last week, whether it would be a position within Interpol or not."

"Well, it's about time," Amy commented, laughing when Emily's eyes bulged.

"I haven't told Derek yet, and I want it to be secret till everything has been finalised. I want to surprise him for a change."

"That man is besotted with you," Amy told her. "I'm pretty sure he will be thrilled to be waking up next to you every morning."

"The feeling is mutual," Emily blushed as she thought about the moment she made her decision to move back to DC. The reddening of her cheeks didn't go unnoticed by Amy.

"What?" Amy asked, smirking.

Emily took a deep breath before answering quietly. "We may have been in bed when I made the decision to move back home." Amy's mouth fell open in shock, before the shock dissolved into a mischievous smile.

"It really was a naughty weekend away," Amy laughed before taking a sip of her wine.

Emily gave an eye roll. "Even though we speak every day, we don't see each other for months at a time," she defended their explosive libidos. "Like you said when Derek first showed up in London; we are making up for lost time."

"You don't need to explain to me," Amy told her. "With the amount of travelling Clyde does, and the amount of time we make up for, I'm surprised we aren't on our way to giving you another god child."

"You looked like you wanted to kill him on Monday, when he mentioned he had to be in Germany two days ago," Emily laughed at her friend.

Amy made a face before commenting, "I would have killed him if he missed Annabel's first birthday." Luckily Clyde had sauntered into the office early Friday afternoon, not being out of the country twenty four hours before returning.

"It's still six months till I'm leaving but I'm going to miss you," Emily told Amy after a beat.

Amy reached her hand across the sofa, grasping Emily's. "I'm only going to be a phone call away."

Author note 2 - …For any continuity issues. I reread the story so far, but I couldn't find any to do with this twist. Let me know what you think of it. As for the six months wait for her return to DC, I put time jumps in the story for a reason.

Also, Annka I'm sorry for not writing their entire weekend, but I know next to nothing about casinos or gambling, so I don't think I would do that justice. And Guest, I really wish I could send you a personal message, but I'm not quite finished with this yet.


	19. Chapter 19

Second Chances – chapter nineteen

December 2014

The sound of scrapping chairs signalled the end of their debriefing. As everyone made their way towards the door, Derek called out. "Is everyone available on Sunday? Emily and I want to have everyone over for dinner before she goes back on Monday. Especially as we're all working over Christmas."

Everyone nodded, accepting the invitation before making their way to their respective desks and offices. Penelope was clearing up from her presentation, while Reid hung around near the door. Morgan picked up his files and his friend caught his attention.

"Do you need help setting up on Sunday?" Spencer asked him.

Morgan thought for a moment. "We should be fine, but come over whenever you want. Just be warned that Emily wants to do all the cooking." Penelope gave a short laugh from the back of the room, listening in on their conversation.

"Are we sure we shouldn't order in?" Spencer asked with a smile on his face.

"I'll let you mention that to Emily," Morgan said patting him on the back with mock support. Becoming serious, he said, "Come over whenever, you're always welcome."

Spencer nodded. "I'm going to play chess in the morning, I'll come after that."

"Uh Genius, it's like a foot of snow out there, where are you playing chess?" Penelope asked.

"They set up tables in the recreational hall," Spencer replied as if it was obvious.

Hotch suddenly appeared in the door way. "Reid do you have your report from the Carter case?" He asked.

"Yeah it's on my desk; I'll go get it now."

Both men left Morgan and Penelope in the conference room. After a few minutes of uncharacteristic silence coming from Morgan, Penelope started to worry. "Hey Stud, cat got your tongue?"

"Huh?" Morgan's head shot up from where he was looking at one of his files, both eyebrows raised towards Penelope, his expression softened as he saw the worry in her eyes. "Sorry Baby Girl, what did you say?"

"I was wondering why you were so quiet. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything's great, Emily home for the week," he smiled as he thought of her.

Penelope smiled at him, her friends were so happy together. Together. Then it clicked in her head what was really going on with him. Emily was going back to London on Monday and it would be weeks if not months before they saw each other. They had been in a long distance relationship for eighteen months and even to outsiders it was excruciatingly obvious how much it hurt them when they were apart.

"Give her a reason to stay," Penelope told him quietly, as she came to stand beside him.

"It's not that simple Baby Girl," he told her, with his shoulders sagging a little. "Emily knows how I feel, and I know she loves her job, I don't want to be the guy who asks her give up something she loves doing."

"She loves you too," Penelope paused for a second. "Now this isn't an option that I want you to entertain that much, but have you considered looking for a job in London?"

"I have," Morgan admitted quietly, instantly regretting it as he saw the shock on her face. That was part of the problem, if he moved to London he would be with Emily, but their family would be here.

"You need to talk to Emily," Penelope said quietly, clearly uncomfortable with the possible outcome of their conversation.

"I know," he said gathering the rest of his things as she collected her notepad and pink fluffy pen. "Don't worry Baby Girl; I'm not going anywhere, at least for now." He gave her a small smile, she smiled back.

"I hate change." Penelope thought for a moment, before the twinkle returned to her eyes. "Although wherever you and Emily end up, it would mean you could start work on creating more fairy god children for me to spoil." Morgan smile got bigger as he put his arm around her shoulders, guiding them out of the room. "Not that I don't love Henry and Jack, but a little girl would be amazing." She told him, getting excited.

"I'll see what I can do, Baby Girl."

"You two would make beautiful babies," she said as they passed Rossi's door.

"Morgan, do you and Emily need to make an announcement?" The older man's head popped out with a questioning look on his face.

"We're not making you a grandpa yet Rossi," Morgan said over his shoulder, jokingly. The older man gave a small frown at the term.

"When you do, I would prefer to be called uncle," he said returning to his office.

A few hours later he returned home to find Emily in the kitchen, engrossed in whatever she was reading that she had laid out on the counter. She jumped slightly as he wrapped his arms around her from behind. Emily relaxed into him as she realised it was him, reaching an arm behind her to caress the back of his neck, as his chin rested on her shoulder, craning to read the book.

"What are you reading?"

"The recipe to make chicken broth," she said pointing at the pot she had simmering away. Emily had been working on her cooking, finding she enjoyed some of the simple recipes. Fran had been a great help, emailing her tips and ideas on what she could try next, even sending her a recipe for cookies that Derek loved as a child.

"Smells great," Morgan said placing a kiss on her collarbone. Emily frowned at his tone and turned in his arms, wrapping hers around him.

"What's wrong?" she asked making eye contact. He brought up a hand to stroke her cheek. "Derek? What's happened?" Emily began to worry at his continued silence.

Seeing the fear in her eyes, Morgan shook his head to reassure her. "Nothing, I just," he took a deep breath. "I just don't want you to leave on Monday."

The look on his face made her want to confess all to him about her move home. Or the fact that she had been at the Interpol offices in DC for a few hours today to sort everything out with Easter, who had agreed to her moving mid-February instead of March. She would be home in eleven weeks. Emily gulped, trying to figure out something to say. Unable to verbalise her thoughts, she pulled him fully into her arms, one of her hands cradling the back of his head.

"I'm sorry, but I should be able to come home again soon," she told him after a minute.

"Really?" He questioned, sounding hopeful, but Emily could hear the slight weariness in his voice, obviously unsure at the prospect of her having so much time off. Emily thought fast so he would stop this line of questioning that if allowed to continue, it would no doubt lead to confessing everything. She still didn't want to get his hopes up before she received her official change of assignment papers.

"Easter has asked me to work with the DC office for a bit," she smiled as she pulled back from him. "He thinks I could be here for about a month from mid-February."

Morgan pulled her back to him, kissing her deeply. "I have no idea how I'm going to let you after a month of waking up next to you." Emily smiled into him as she kissed him again, keeping her silence, thinking that his reaction to her surprise will be worth the wait.

"I love you," she whispered against his lips.

…

It was Sunday evening, and Morgan found himself in the kitchen preparing cocoa for everyone as he looked out at his snow covered garden. He watched as Emily, JJ, Hotch, Reid, showed Henry and Jack how to throw snowballs for Clooney. The balls exploding back into powder between his jaws as he caught them. Rossi, Alex and Penelope had opted to stay in the warm living room.

His gaze shifted to Emily, as JJ whispered something in her ear. The women turned towards Reid, mischievous smile on their faces. The Kid never saw the attack coming, as they pelted him with snowballs. Henry instantly came to the defence of his god father, throwing snowballs at his mother. Reid helped him by returning fire on Emily. Jack started to take aim at Hotch.

'_Give her a reason to stay.' _Penelope's words had been going through his head all weekend. Retrieving his phone from his pocket, he typed in the search box what he wanted to find, the results displaying a few minutes later.

As he browsed through the options, Morgan thought back over the day as he waited for the milk to boil. He and Emily had taken Clooney for a walk this morning before they got to work on preparing for their family. Reid had arrived early with the information of meeting someone while playing chess had shocked him, even though it was the first time they had met Morgan could tell the younger man was intrigued by the woman who had beat him at chess today. He was happy his friend was starting to move past the torment and pain he had been through since Maeve's death. But Reid had been shocked by his own reaction to the woman, and Morgan hoped he wouldn't shut himself off.

Putting his phone on the counter, he poured the milk into the waiting cups. As he put them onto a tray Penelope came through the door.

"Hey Hot Stuff, need any help?" She asked cheerily.

"You can take these into the living room," Morgan said picking up the bowl of marshmallows and the plate of cookies Emily had made. As he turned to her he saw his phone in her hand, her eyebrows raised. "Uh, Baby Girl, can I have that back?"

Penelope handed him the phone, her mouth opened and closed a few times as she tried to figure out what to say. He held up a finger to keep her quiet. "You can't tell anyone."

Her eyes widened at the thought, her mouth opened and closed again before she started to talk. "But, you're looking at…"

"I know, but don't tell anyone."

"But…" Penelope started again. Taking a deep breath, she tried to keep her heart beat under control as her excitement grew. After a moment, she smiled at him. "That's a great reason for her to stay."


	20. Chapter 20

Second Chances – chapter twenty

February 2015

The little toddler held on to the sofa as she made her way towards her god mother. As soon as she was close enough she held her hands out to her Aunt Emi, giggling at her. Annabel was immediately swooped up and held high above Emily's head as Emily blew raspberries on her stomach, making Annabel squeal with laughter.

Emily brought the little girl back down to her lap, tiggling her, both of them laughing. After a few moments Emily stopped allowing Annabel to catch her breath and calm down. She closed her hands around the little girl, holding her close. "Aunt Emi is going to miss you," Emily told her.

Annabel looked up at her Aunt in confusion. "Miss me?"

Emily placed a kiss on her forehead. "That's right. I'm not going to see you for a long time." Emily felt her eyes tear up as she saw the frown on the little girl's face.

"Emi go?"

Amy came in from the kitchen, placing one of the teas in front of Emily, before taking the seat opposite, watching her friend interact with her daughter. "She's going to miss you. So am I." Emily looked towards her and her smile faltered.

"Are you sure I can't convince you to work with me in America?"

Amy shook her head sadly. "Sorry, but my parents are here, his parents are here. I would like Annabel to grow up knowing her grandparents." Emily nodded sadly as Annabel climbed off her lap to start playing with her toys. "But don't think for one minute that I'm going to let you get away with not staying in touch. I'm on the other end of the phone, whenever you need me, and it's not like this is the last time we'll see each other."

"I know," Emily told Amy, smiling at Annabel as she put a book on her lap and started flipping through the pages.

Hours later Emily sat on her window seat looking out over London. Picking up the glass of wine that rested on the little table, she took a sip. Tomorrow evening she would be at Derek's house. During the time they had been together, the longest time they had spent occupying the same space was ten days. They had barely argued, and anything that they disagreed on was easily settled. In the back of her mind, there was a small part of her that was waiting for it to all go wrong.

All Morgan knew she was staying with him for a month. Clyde had offered to arrange an apartment for her, but she had told him she would get back to him on that depending on what she and Morgan decided. Most of Emily's things had been transported back to DC and placed in storage until a decision had been made. All that remained was her four picture photo frame and her blanket and they could be packed in with her clothes before her flight tomorrow.

Emily would miss the apartment, especially the window seat. She had been here for nearly three years, and in that time it had become a source of comfort for her. When Emily first arrived she had been running away from the emotional fall out from trying to hold onto her old life.

In Paris, Emily had still been recovering from her injuries and grieving for the loss of her friends to think of much else. London had allowed her the time she needed to reconcile everything in her own mind, including the original undercover mission that had started the whole fiasco. London had given Emily an opportunity for a fresh start, and it had led her back to Derek. Emily would be forever in Spencer's debt for giving that plane ticket to Derek.

She was too wired to sleep, so she wrapped the blanket around her tighter as she looked out over London. Emily thought back to Derek's first visit, how within a few hours of his arrival they had nearly made love in this very spot, how they had made the decision to explore their feelings for one another. She couldn't believe that was almost two years ago.

Emily stayed in that spot all night watching the city while it slept, watching while it slowly woke up. Today was the next part of her new beginning.

Two days later Emily sat wrapped in her blanket in Morgan's living room reading her book as she waited for Morgan to return from a case in Las Vegas. Clooney lay on the floor, snuggled into her feet. Her change of assignment papers placed in an envelope on the coffee table, next to her tea; the photo frame on the table as well. Little clues Emily hoped he would pick up on.

She nervously glanced at her watch; Penelope said they would be landing an hour ago. In all the build-up to this moment, she hadn't felt nervous or uncertain of her actions. But as Emily waited for Morgan, questions ran through her head. Did he really want her to come home? Would he be happy that she made the decision without talking to him about it?

Clooney's ears perked up as the key turned in the lock. He went over to greet Morgan. "Hey Clooney, how you doing? You been good for Emily?" Morgan said as he stroked the dog. Turning his attention to Emily, he smiled. "You're a sight for sore eyes."

Emily frowned a little at the tiredness in his eyes, he looked exhausted. "Bad case?"

"Dismembered prostitutes scattered across Vegas," Morgan told her, snagging a quick kiss as he flopped down on the sofa next to her. She grimaced in response, trying to shake the image that appeared in her own head. Emily didn't want to think of what was going through Morgan's head if he saw the actual bodies.

Emily watched his face as he looked at the coffee table. Initially he was absorbed in his own thoughts, but that look soon ebbed away to concentration as he saw what was on the coffee table. Morgan turned to look at Emily, his eyes falling on the blanket draped across her lap. After a moment of looking back and forth between the blanket and the photo frame, he raised his eyes to hers, questioning.

"You bought your blanket? And photos?" Morgan asked. Emily could see a slight spark in his eyes; he knew what these things meant to her, and knew it was important if she brought them with her.

Reaching over to the coffee table, she picked up the envelope and passed it to him. "You might be interested in this," Emily told him, keeping her face neutral. She shifted so she was sitting sideways on the sofa so she could watch his reaction.

Morgan cautiously opened the envelope and took the papers out. He read the first words out loud. "Change of assign…" Morgan trailed off as he read the rest in silence. Emily bit her lip as she waited for him to address her. "You're coming home?" He asked turning to her, his eyes lighting up as he smiled.

Emily nodded. "I am home." Morgan's arm wrapped around her waist, drawing her into a deep kiss. Pulling away, she rested her forehead on his.

"Where are the rest of your things?" Morgan questioned. He hadn't seen any boxes.

"In storage," she told him. "We need to talk about…"

"You're moving in here," he cut her off.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, we've spent too much time apart," he said kissing her again. Emily moved her hand to caress his face, deepening the kiss. She felt him shift and start to push her backwards, so she was lying on the sofa. He hovered above her, his hands starting to work on the buttons of her shirt as he kissed his way down her neck as she arched against him. "You're home," Morgan mumbled into her.

"I'm home," Emily whispered back.

Author note – that's one surprise sorted, thought about putting them in the same chapter but decided against it. Thank you to everyone who has commented and continuing to read. Let me know what you think.


	21. Chapter 21

Author note – it's a bit naughty, if you don't want to read skip to about two thirds down. Let me know what you think. Thank you for the wonderful comments; I can't believe there are over a hundred reviews.

Second Chances – chapter twenty one

February 2015

The following morning Emily woke to the feeling of soft kisses being trailed along her naked back. Smiling she realised where she was. And whose lips were tracing their way down her spin. "Um," she moaned. "Five more minutes," Emily said sleepily as she snuggled into her pillow, trying not to let him see the playful smile on her face.

The kisses changed their path up towards her shoulder, along her neck, reaching her ear. "I seem to remember someone saying that the first morning we woke up together," his voice against her ear made her shiver; it reminded her so much of that morning after the wedding. Morgan's fingertips skimmed her hips along band of her panties, making her hold her breath when they dipped below the fabric, stroking her skin lightly, and not moving any lower.

Emily turned onto her back, loosely slipping her arms around Morgan's neck. "Morning," she whispered as their lips met languidly. The intensity of their kiss grew as it continued, Emily's arms tightening their hold on Morgan. She arched into him as he rested his arms on the mattress either side of her head, Emily groaned as she felt his chest dropping to come into full contact with hers. "This is a nice way to wake up," Emily told him as she ran her hands up and down his back.

"I like waking up next to you," Morgan replied as he resumed kissing a path down her body. Emily shifted her hips so she cradled him between her legs, she could feel him pressing into her. She moaned softly as he placed a kiss at the curve of her breast. It felt like he was everywhere as he continued his journey down her body, fingers followed by lips. Emily's anticipation grew as she felt him pull her underwear away from her body.

Morgan began to tease her, bringing her to the brink over and over again, never quite letting her reach that peak. Propped up by her pillow, Emily looked down at him as she bit her lip in lust filled frustration, only to find him watching her. Catching her gaze, he winked as he continued to torment her.

Emily let out a small growl. "You just wait till our positions are reversed." Morgan placed a kiss to her upper thigh, just above the small scar there, causing Emily to take a ragged deep breath. "Pay back's a bitch, Morgan." She threw her head back in defeat as she felt the vibrations from his deep laugh against her skin.

"Something wrong Prentiss?" He whispered as he kissed his way back up to her lips. Emily's arms pulled him down to her in a hungry kiss, trying to convey how much she needed him at that moment. With his body stretched out over her, Emily could feel he had removed his boxers at some point.

"I need you," Emily told him between kisses. Still tingling from his exploration, Emily's eyes closed as she felt his tip slip inside; as he began to thrust inside of her, she felt the stirrings of her first orgasm start to build again. Wrapping her legs around him, she urged him deeper.

"Let go," Morgan whispered in her ear. Instantly her mind flashed to their first night together as she clung to him as she crashed through her first climax.

Morgan continued to plunge inside of her as she came down from her high. She captured his lips in a deep kiss, their tongues fighting for control.

Emily whimpered as his pace began to quicken. She felt herself spasm again as she felt his teeth graze her collarbone. Emily writhed in pleasure as Morgan angled himself to capture her nipple in his lips. She threw her head back again as the sensation shot to her core and she could feel herself begin to clench when she heard it.

"Marry me," Morgan whispered against her breast, stilling his movement. Her eyes connected with his. Her eyes widened in a mixture of desire and shock as she saw the serious expression on his face as she still teetered on the cusp. He started to move within her again, deeper than before as his lips hovered above hers as he asked again, "Marry me Emily."

"Yes," Emily called out as she climaxed again and he finally followed over the edge. He rested on top of her for a few minutes being careful not to squash her, before he rolling over to lie next to her. His hand slipped into hers, their fingers intertwining as their breathing returned to normal.

Panting heavily, they both found the ceiling very interesting as they both realised what had just occurred. He really hadn't planned on asking her that way.

After a few minutes, he heard Emily start to laugh softly next to him. "You know it's not good for a guy's ego to laugh at him after sex."

"I'm not laughing at you," she said as she began to laugh a bit harder. "I'm imagining my mothers' face when I tell her I was proposed to during sex." Morgan screwed his eyes shut, pinching the bridge of his nose, trying not to laugh with her as he felt the blush creeping up his neck.

"You have a twisted sense of humour, you know that?" She laughed harder.

After a minute her laughter died. "Did you mean it?" Emily asked hesitantly.

He turned his head to look at her. Seeing the shy, uncertain look on her face, Morgan reached over to cup her cheek. "Yes, it was definitely not how I planned on doing it. But I did mean it. You said yes."

Emily's face lit up with a smile as she replied quietly, "Yes I did." They lay gazing at one another for a few minutes, their eyes locked in a silent conversation. "You planned it?" Emily questioned, her eyebrow raised.

"Not really, but I did get a ring," Morgan said as he let go of her hand as he rolled away from her and reached over to pick up his discarded shirt from the floor. "Can you put this on please?" He asked, handing it to her, as he put his boxers on.

Emily frowned in confusion as she accepted the shirt, rising to her knees on the bed. "Why?" She slipped her arms into the shirt, and did the buttons up.

"Because I need to be able to concentrate for the next few minutes; and I find that quite hard to do when you're naked," Morgan replied as he opened the draw beside his side of the bed. Reaching in her pulled out a small jewellery box, which he opened and took the ring out, holding it between his fingers of one hand; he grasped her ring bearing hand with his other.

Emily, eyes locked onto the ring in his hand, held her breath as she heard Morgan take a deep breath before beginning to speak. "We have known each other for nearly ten years, but never in my life have I found anyone to be as intriguing as you are. From that first day at the round table, you sparked my interest. You make me laugh, smile, and you help me forget the horrors of the world. I lost you twice and twice you came back to me." A tear slipped from his eye, and Emily reached up to brush it away, leaving her hand resting on his cheek. His eyes locked with hers, and she offered him a small reassuring smile, fighting to hold back her own tears. "Emily Prentiss, I am in love with you. Will you marry me?"

"Yes," she whispered as he slid the ring on her fingers. As soon as it was on, Emily reached up with her hand, mirroring her other hand as she moved her head upwards. Just before their lips met, she whispered again "Yes, I will marry you."

Author Note 2 – should I leave it there or should I plan the wedding? Do you want to read Elizabeth's reaction? Let me know what you think.


	22. Chapter 22

Second Chances – chapter twenty two

Later that morning, Emily and Morgan sat side by side on the back porch as they took turns throwing Clooney's ball for him.

"You're not really going to tell your mother about how I proposed the first time, are you?" She gave him a wicked smile as she thought of her mothers' reaction.

"It's a tempting thought," she replied.

"Reel in the rebellious teenager," he smirked back

"I do need to tell her that I've moved back to DC though and that we're getting married," Emily told him.

Emily could see the questions running through his head as he thought about her return to the states. Not much talking had occurred after she had presented him with her change of assignment papers. "How long did you know that you were moving back?"

"Well, I made the decision to come home when we were in Atlantic City," she let that information sink in before continuing. "I was going to start looking for a job here, when Easter offered me the DC while we were at Annabel's first birthday. Only Amy, Easter and Annabel knew what I was planning."

"You've known since September?" He clarified.

"I didn't want to get your hopes up in case it fell through. Plus there was this little part of me that wanted to surprise you for a change." Her smile softened as she looked at the newly acquired ring on her finger. "It seems like we were both planning surprises. The ring is beautiful." They shared a quick kiss.

"I loved your surprise," he look turned thoughtful for a moment. "If you don't mind, I would like to go talk to Reid later on this afternoon. I would like him to know today."

"That's a great idea," she said as she leant into him, dropping her head to his shoulder as they watched Clooney run around the garden. "We can go see him together."

"Um, actually I would like to see him on my own," he told her a hesitantly.

"But I would like to thank him for everything he has done for us," she said frowning a little as she lifted her head from his shoulder. He took a deep breath.

"I know, but I want to talk to him about something," Morgan told her. "Do Penelope and JJ know that you've moved home yet?" He asked trying to distract her. He failed.

"Not yet," she answered. "Is everything okay with Spencer?" Emily worried.

"He's fine, Em." Morgan knew he would have to tell her what he wanted to talk to Reid about to stop her from worrying. "I just I want to ask him to be my best man."

Emily immediately calmed down as his words registered in her head. "Oh," she smiled at him. "I'll invite JJ and PG over and tell them how you popped the question."

He began to blush a little as he thought of his co-workers knowing that particular detail. "Um about that, I don't suppose you could tell them I got down on one knee and declared my undying love, could you? And leave out the part where we were…" The blush had spread across his face as his words trailed off.

"The part where we were having sex?" Emily questioned, smiling wickedly at him. "Hm, you'd have to offer me something pretty good in exchange for my silence, 'cause we girls like to share details like that. Plus they're going to see through any lies I tell them."

"I'm sure we can think of something to bargain with," he smirked at her as she schooled her expression to stay neutral. Sighing in defeat, Morgan pleaded with her, "At least promise me that our mothers will get the PG version, if you can't keep it from our friends."

Emily's features faltered as she thought of Fran's expression, she immediately felt the flush creeping up her neck. "Okay, I'll give my mother the PG version," Emily pouted a little.

Relieved, Morgan leant into her, kissing her. "Thank you," he said.

"Although, your mother doesn't think you're half as innocent as you think she does," Emily laughed as his head twisted comically to look at her, his eyes wide with shock at her statement.

It was later that day when Emily opened the front door to Penelope and JJ, exchanging hugs with the women. She ushered them into the living room, sitting opposite them as they sat side by side on the sofa. For a minute they sat in silence, Emily had been vague on the phone when she had rung them, refusing to elaborate on why she needed to speak to them. Emily could see the confusion, worry and intrigue etched across their faces and they looked her over, trying to find something out of place. Emily saw JJ's eyes land on the ring, and her friend smiled but kept her silence when Emily flicked her eyes at Penelope. JJ gave a slight nod as they both waited for the inevitable scream.

But it never came, and Emily could see the exact moment when the anticipation got the better of Penelope. "Okay, my Vision, enough of the silence. What's going on?"

"I moved home on Thursday," Emily stated, easing into the revelations that would come this afternoon. Both women looked confused at what Emily had to say.

"But I thought you were only here for a month," JJ queried, allowing her friend to tell her story in her own time. JJ could hear Morgan upstairs, getting ready to go out.

"I lied," Emily said a bit sheepishly. "I said that to not to get Morgan's hopes up if everything fell through. I had decided to move back before Easter offered me the DC office to run; he knew I wanted to come home."

Immediately her friends smiled at her explanation. "Oh my god," Penelope's eyes widened as it sunk in. She cast her mind back to what she had seen on Morgan's phone before Christmas, and allowed her gaze to drop to Emily's left hand. "He picked that one," Penelope said looking back up at Emily. "It's beautiful."

Emily and JJ both turned to the techie in shock. "You knew?" Emily laughed.

"It was the hardest two months of my life. I was so excited when I found him looking at them on his phone." JJ snickered beside her.

"It's great news Em," JJ told her. "Now come here so we can hug, because we're all not gonna fit on that armchair."

The brunette sat in the small space between her friends, and was immediately engulfed in their arms.

"We need to start planning the bachelorette party," Penelope said excitedly as Morgan appeared in the doorway.

"Uh, do I get some love too?" He questioned as he saw all three women huddled together. JJ and Penelope got up to congratulate him as well.

"And you were worried she'd say no," Penelope said as she released him. Morgan looked past her to see Emily's head tilting to the side, questioning. Morgan shrugged in response.

"I was nervous," he told her. Emily smiled warmly at him as the others resumed their previous position beside her. "Right I'll leave you ladies to it; I'm going to find Reid." He gave them a short wave before turning to open the front door.

Just as Morgan stepped out the front door he heard JJ ask, "So how did he propose?" He groaned when he heard Emily's small chuckle in response.

….

In contrast to her childhood homes, the home she now shared with Morgan had photographs, reminders of special events, a few precious keep sakes; something she had avoided keeping her entire life. As a child they were painful reminders of the isolation, lack of affection from her parents, her parents' marriage deteriorating as they both strived to keep a social standing with other Ambassadors; and as a teenager she had rebelled against those tokens; during her time at the CIA and Interpol, she had been taught to be ready to walk away at any time, leaving nothing traceable behind. Something Easter encouraged all employees to do. Something he was doing with Amy and Annabel, nothing could trace him to their home unless they followed him. Emily knew he was prepared to walk away if he ever thought his girls were in danger.

The Saturday following Morgan's proposal Emily found herself standing in her mother's living room. Emily saw some pictures she had never thought she would see again. Picking up the photo frame from the table next to her, she gazed into the faces of a younger version of herself and her grandfather. Smiling slightly, Emily wondered how her mother came to have it; she presumed it was lost during the time she had been in Paris. Examining the room further she found the bracelet that had been passed down to her on her sixteenth birthday on her mother's desk, draped across a small photo of her as a baby; the one her grandmother had given to her mother and her mother had given to her.

Other small trinkets started to get Emily's attention as she waited for her mother to join her so they could have lunch. Once again Emily wondered how these items came to be in her mother's possession.

Elizabeth Prentiss breezed into the room, barely registering her daughter as she read the file in her hands. "Emily," she said brightly, looking up at her daughter. Emily saw the usual appraisal her mother gave her on initial contact; knowing her mother was judging her posture, weight, nervousness, searching for injuries. As her mother's gaze drifted down Emily, her attention was caught by the engagement ring on her finger and Emily fought the urge to fiddle with it. Her mother lifted her gaze to look Emily in the eye and raised an eyebrow as she queried, "I didn't know you were involved with anyone."

"We've been together for nearly two years now. He proposed last week,"

Elizabeth kept her focus on her daughter as she thought. "Who is he? Someone you met in London?"

"No," Emily started. "Derek Morgan, from my old team at the BAU," there was a flash of recognition in her mothers' eyes and she flicked her gaze towards the bracelet, Emily resisted asking her mother about it now. "He proposed when I moved back to DC last week. I'm running the Interpol office here now," Emily smiled warmly as she looked down at her hand.

"Agent Morgan?" Elizabeth questioned. Emily sighed at the neutral tone in her mother's voice.

"Yes, you met when you came to the BAU for help," she inwardly winced at her own tense tone. Before her 'death', she and her mother had made an effort to repair their relationship and bridge the emotional distance between them. Since her return, the interaction with her mother had been laced with the disapproval that Emily had often felt during her teenage years.

Emily was surprised by the unguarded smile that came over her mother's face. "I know. He's a lovely man." Emily's head tilted to the side as she contemplated her mother; they had been introduced, but to Emily's recollection they didn't interact much. Not enough for her mother to draw that conclusion. "We met again after your funeral," Elizabeth stated as she saw the questions in Emily's eyes. "I was unable to make it home in time, and he contacted me after I arrived back. He and your friends had sorted your things into storage for me, but he put aside a box of items he thought I might want to keep hold of. We had a nice talk."

Emily was stunned into silence. Morgan had given her mother the tokens she had found around the room; and she was amazed that her often unaffectionate mother had wanted to keep them. She tried to think of something to say, but her mother beat her to it. "I'm glad he was able to bring you home." The accompanying look was full of the maternal love that Emily had craved as a child. "Both times," she added.

"So am I," Emily said in a small voice as she and her mother took seats opposite each other. In the middle of the coffee table a tray with tea and cups had been placed. There was a staring contest between mother and daughter for a few minutes as they both tried to collect their thoughts.

"Are you in love?" Elizabeth asked.

"Yes," Emily told her without hesitation.

"He's been in love with you for a long time." Emily found it strange talking to her mother about this aspect of her relationship, especially when she apparently knew about Derek's feelings before Emily did. "Why didn't you bring Derek with you?"

"He got called away on a case yesterday, but I wanted to talk to you on my own first, so we could catch up without it being awkward for Derek," Emily explained, her mother nodded understandingly. "What did you two talk about?" Emily asked, not really knowing if she wanted know the truth or whether she hoped her mother would keep Derek's confidence.

"You," her mother stated warmly, before a frown descended on her features. "Derek was very sweet, showing concern for me, while he looked like he would shatter if anyone asked how he was feeling. We told each other stories about you, I told him of your first steps; and in return he told me some amusing stories of team nights out, although I suspect they were the toned down versions for me." Elizabeth gave a small smirk, which made Emily flush slightly. The woman sitting in front of her was in complete contrast to the one that had yelled at her as a teenager for her wild child antics.

"So, I take it you approve?"

"Of course. Would it matter if I didn't?" Elizabeth asked.

"No at all," Emily stated with confidence, maintaining eye contact.

"Good," Elizabeth paused, her gaze drifting over Emily's shoulder out the patio doors behind her as she thought of something. "Would you like to have the wedding here?" She asked.

"Really?" Emily questioned. She did love her mother's garden, and the space would be beautiful for the wedding. "I'll talk to Derek about it before we confirm anything."

Her mothers' head tipped to the side as she examined her. "You seem more settled than before you moved to London." Elizabeth told Emily.

Emily took a deep breath, looking down at her hands, resisting the urge to bite her nails. "I am. I needed time to step back from my life here; deal with everything that had happened. It took a while to get used to the fact that everyone was still in my life this time round." Emily looked back up at her mother. "I hope that includes you."

"Do you regret what's happened? Returning from Paris, going to London?" Elizabeth wasn't sure if she wanted to know the answer. There was a long pause before Emily answered.

"There are a lot of things that I regret about the past few years; that the people I love thought I was dead; that Derek and I decided we wanted to be together after I moved almost four thousand miles away; that I was unable to be here when my friends needed me." Emily took a deep breath before continuing. "But there's a part of me that wouldn't change it, as it led me to where I am today. I just wish it wasn't with as much heartbreak."

Elizabeth nodded in understanding; knowing how career decisions often destroyed loving families. "You're happy now?" She asked.

A huge smile appeared on Emily's face as she toyed with the engagement ring on her finger, she nodded. "Yes, very happy." Elizabeth smiled at her daughter.

"How did he propose?"

Emily bit her lip as she thought back to the morning he woke her up, placing kisses along her neck. Emily told her mother the version Morgan had made her promise to tell. "I never told him I was moving back. I wanted it to be a surprise. The morning after I told him, I woke to find him holding the ring in his hand. He told me he loved me, and then he asked me to be his wife." Unable to resist any further, the nail of her index finger met her lip before she was able to pull it back. She saw a flicker in her mother's eye at the movement.

"Congratulations," Elizabeth told her, as she sat forward to pour them both a cup of tea. "There are people I would like to invite…"

"No," Emily cut her off before she could start listing other political figures or dignitaries. "My marriage to Derek will have nothing to do with politics; that includes the wedding. All we want is a small ceremony for friends and family. If you don't agree with that, then we can find somewhere else to get married." Elizabeth sat there stunned for a moment; knowing her reaction would dictate the future of the relationship she had with her daughter.

"A small wedding with family and friends," Elizabeth repeated, her smile grew as Emily released the breath she had been holding. "It sounds wonderful." Emily smiled back at her. "So," Elizabeth started after a moment passed, "how did he really propose?"

Emily's eyes flashed to her mothers' as the rebellious teenager she once was, usually buried deep within her, rose to the surface for a moment as she told her mother the truth. "Mid orgasm," she stated unapologetically as she took a sip of her tea.

Elizabeth's responding smirk and comment made Emily cough slightly as the tea went down the wrong way. "When you inform your father, lie to him a bit more convincingly."

That evening, Emily curled up on the sofa reading her book when her phone beeped. Emily picked up the phone, her hand brushing the bracelet that her mother had given back to her. She saw a message from Morgan.

'_Hey Princess, how was lunch with your Mother?' _

'_Good, she's happy for us, wants to have dinner with both of us.' _Emily typed back.

'_Okay sounds good. I haven't got much time. I love you, and will try to speak to you tomorrow.'_

Emily typed a similar response. A few minutes later she received another message.

'_You told her, didn't you?' _

Author Note – I must confess that I wrote Elizabeth's reaction to the proposal before I wrote the proposal. It's the reason why Morgan proposed mid coitus. I have reread the story and I have a few loose ends I would like to tie up, so there are probably only a few chapters left. Thank you for all the wonderful comments let me know what you think.


	23. Chapter 23

Second Chances – chapter twenty three

June 2015

Emily resisted the urge to throw her phone at the wall. She stared at the offending object for a moment before hastily wiping away the tears she felt welling in her eyes. Emily didn't know why she had expected anything different. Maybe it was because her relationship with her mother had been better than it ever had, though not perfect. There were still those occasions when there was an awkward silence, those moments when they were both too stubborn to back down. Elizabeth had shown her softer side as the preparations had led her to revealing those early days with Emily's father, when they were in love, before the arguments, before the bitter divorce.

There was a knock at her office door. Looking at the clock on her computer screen, Emily saw it was lunch time. "Come in Rossi," she called to the closed door, wiping her eyes again. The older profiler poked his head around the door.

"Hey Kiddo, you promised me lunch for this favour," he said. Emily rolled her eyes at him good naturedly. She had asked him to give her team a seminar in interrogation techniques, which he had agreed to.

"How was it?" Emily asked.

"You've got a good team. Hopefully this morning has sunk in, still got a few bits to cover this afternoon." Rossi sat in the chair opposite Emily, regarding her.

As she found herself on the end of his stare, Emily tried not to shift uneasily under his scrutiny, but she knew it was useless. He knew her better than most people. He could probably still see the tears in the corner of her eyes, but Rossi didn't mention it. He would wait till they were somewhere more private before launching a sneak attack. And even though Emily knew it was coming, she wouldn't avoid it.

"That's good." Emily started gathering her things and shutting down the computer. "Where do you want to have lunch?"

Rossi chose a small Italian restaurant a few blocks away. They settled into a corner booth, and were given menus by the waiter. It was after they ordered when he pounced.

"How's the wedding plans going?"

She stared at him for a beat, considering her answer. "It's going well, I'm thankful it's small. The hardest thing I've had to do was reign in my mother and Penelope." They had taken on some of the planning aspects, and their enthusiasm was starting to take its toll on Emily.

"Have you gotten hold of your father yet?"

Emily sighed, inwardly wincing. '_He's good.'_ She thought to herself. "Just before you came to meet me for lunch." It had taken her three months to get hold of him. For the first two weeks she had tried the last number she had for him, before going to her mother for his current information. His assistant had given her the run around several times. He had finally called her back this morning.

'_Hi Sweetheart, how are you?'_

'_I'm fine, how are you?'_

'_Extremely busy, you know how work is,' he was obviously distracted by something. 'I was wondering why you had left me so many messages.'_

'_I'm getting married,' Emily told him, trying to be cheerful despite her father's attitude._

'_That's nice,' he turned away from the speaker and mumbled something to someone next to him._

'_I was wondering if you wanted to walk me down the aisle.'_

'_Sweetheart,' her father sighed into the phone. 'I'm very busy, I'll be working. I have to go, I've got a meeting.' With that her father hung up and she was listening to the dial tone. _

"He didn't even ask when it was," Emily mumbled as she sniffed back the tears. While they hadn't set a proper date yet, they were thinking of February next year.

"Then he doesn't know what he's missing." Rossi told her, holding back on what he really thought of the man he had never met. Rossi would never think of rejecting any child let alone his own when she was so excited about getting married. "Have you thought about asking your mother?"

"I don't know," Emily wiped a stray tear away, grateful her mascara was waterproof. Rossi gave her a reassuring smile. "I shouldn't have expected anything different. The last time I properly spoke to him was before he and my mother divorced and that was when I was thirteen." Since then their interaction had consisted of the occasional phone call on birthdays, Christmas, graduations, even rarer visits. Their conversations growing shorter and less frequent over time.

Rossi shook his head lightly, feeling for his young friend. During the time he had known her, Emily had become the daughter he never had. She had been one of the first to reach out to him, during his own torment; she had been the first to confront him over what was bothering. Emily had been his sounding board when Carolyn had asked for his help. "I'll do it," he said. Her eyes snapped back to his, wide in shock. "If you want," Rossi offered her an out.

Emily's eyes softened as she maintained eye contact. "Are you sure you want to?"

"Of course," he said with a twinkle in his eye. "I'd be honoured to call you my daughter." She gave him a shy smile as their food was set down in front of them.

"I'm not sure many people would agree with you," she said taking a bite of her mushroom tortellini.

"Well they don't know like I do," he told. "Besides, you can match me shot for shot, almost beat me at Rock Star, and curse in Italian better than I can." A twinkle appeared in her eyes as he listed her 'qualities'.

"Okay, but for my mother's sake please leave that out of your speech."

…...

November 2015

Spencer sat opposite Emily in their living room, a chess board set out on the coffee table between them. They were waiting for Morgan to return from his latest property so they could go to the cinema.

"So," Emily's voice broke through his concentration on the board. "Is Helen coming?"

Spencer blinked at her in surprise, before realising what she was asking. "Yes, I asked her last week. She's looking forward to the wedding." He paused for a moment, moving his rook. "I thought all wedding talk was barred today." Spencer said looking up at Emily, his lip quirked into a smile as she made a frustrated growl.

"It is," she stated as she thought through her next move. "My mother just wanted to finalise numbers before she goes to Italy next week."

Emily made her move, knowing that Spencer had her in five. She had wanted a wedding-free weekend to relax and unwind. Her mother and Penelope had both been amazing when organizing the day, but sometimes they could be too overbearing for Emily's liking. She had in the politest way possible told them to leave her alone for the weekend.

Glancing up at Spencer, Emily studied her friend, seeing that he was more relaxed than she had in the past few years. She gave him a small smile before enquiring, "How's it going with Helen?" Her smile grew bigger as he blushed as he thought of the woman he had met ten months before. Helen had to go on a course this weekend for her work.

"It's, uh really nice," Spencer said with a small voice. His hesitant voice made Emily frown.

"Nice?" She asked. "What's wrong Spence?" He tucked a piece of hair behind his ear, sitting back on the sofa, giving up on the game for the moment.

"It's nothing, everything is going really well. I am happy," he paused, unsure of how to continue. "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different outcome," Spencer quoted Einstein and Emily got the reference, realised what was wrong.

Tilting her head to the side she contemplated the best way to advise her friend. It had been a while since he had needed to talk about Maeve and the emotional fallout from her death. Emily knew his relationship with Helen had been progressing; he had told her that he was going to dinner at Helen's place a few weeks before. Spencer had been so nervous about going; Emily had guessed the significance of the evening. It had been the first time he had spent the night.

"Spencer," Emily started. "This is not the same as before. This isn't going to end the same way," she said softly.

"How do you know that?" His voice was quiet and scared.

"I don't know that, but there are always going to be monsters lurking in the dark. You know that," her voice was gentle, but firm. "But you can't let fear scare you away from allowing yourself to be happy, from allowing yourself to love, to be loved."

"Sometimes when I'm with Helen, it feels like I'm waiting for someone to jump out and rip her away from me."

"You can't think like that. You can't predict the future," Emily tried to reason with him, hoping he wasn't going to break his heart as well as Helen's. Emily liked her and she was quickly becoming part of the family.

"How are you and Morgan are able to ignore that danger despite everything that has happened?" Spencer couldn't help the pang of jealousy that crept into his voice.

"We have spent years being afraid. That feeling never goes away, but you can't let it dictate your future. It's how the monsters win. They thrive on that fear."

Spencer was silent as he thought over what Emily had to say. When he had first seen Helen in the park, Spencer had no idea how important she would become to him. Their friendship had grown tentatively, first by having coffee with one another after playing game after game of chess. Their coffee dates had become lunch and then dinner. They had begun to meet during the week, when Spencer wasn't away on cases.

He and Helen had often talked long into the night about both of their childhoods, about their relationship with their mothers, the bullying they both endured. Spencer had told Helen about Maeve, and she had supported him through his admission. In turn Helen had explained about her therapy, Spencer had accompanied her when she had attempted something new. Every time they met, he found out something new. He was fascinated by her; she was in his thoughts when they weren't together. He was falling in love.

"How do you feel about Helen?" Emily's voice broke through his thoughts.

"I'm falling in love with her," Spencer admitted quietly, a wistful smile coming over his face. After a few minutes he asked "Would you teach me how to dance?"

An hour later, Morgan opened the front door of his house to the sounds of instrumental music and his fiancé mumbling something about trainers. "Ouch," he heard Emily say.

That was immediately followed by Spencer saying, "I'm so sorry Emily."

He felt Penelope close behind him as he pushed open the living room door. The coffee table had been moved to the side, as well as the sofa. Clooney had tucked himself underneath the table for protection.

Spencer was stood awkwardly in the middle of the living room as Emily was bent nearly in half, trying to rub the toes on one foot.

"Uh, what's going on?" Morgan asked.

Both Emily and Spencer spun towards the door, wide eyed in surprise as they were interrupted.

"Reid wanted me to teach him to dance." Emily saw Penelope behind Morgan in the doorway, and the blonde held up her hands in response.

"I promise no wedding talk, just movie and dinner."

"I'm making an exception," Emily started. "He," she said pointing at Spencer, "gets to wear his converse with his suit." Emily started to limp over to Morgan, who held his hands out to Emily when she was within arms width. "I hope Helen has tougher toes than I have."

"Are you okay?" Morgan asked with concern. He looked over his shoulder at Spencer, who stood there looking mortified that he may have hurt Emily.

"I'm fine. Very happy you're a better dancer than Spencer," she gave Morgan a quick kiss. She continued on into the hallway, hugging Penelope as she passed.

"Where are you going?" Morgan asked, his brow furrowed as he watched her hobble.

"I'm strapping my toes then going to get my walking boots; they should offer me more protection while teaching Reid to dance."

Author Note – thank you for your lovely comments, they make me so happy. Let me know what you think.


	24. Chapter 24

Second Chances – chapter twenty four

February 2016

It was an unusually warm day for February. Emily stood in front of the full length mirror her hands pressing along her tummy, trying to see if anything was out of place. Her dress was on, make-up and hair done. She had fifteen minutes to go before she had to be downstairs. Her mother and Penelope were downstairs dealing with some last minute issues, trying to keep the day for Emily as stress free as possible.

She found it strange that she wasn't nervous. When she left the BAU four years ago, Emily had no idea that her new beginning would bring her back to DC; no idea that she would be marrying Morgan. Their new start was beginning today, and no matter what the future brought them they would deal with it together.

Elizabeth knocked once on the door before opening it without waiting for a response. "Sweetheart, does the best man really need to wear tennis shoes with his suit?" Emily rolled her eyes at her mother, trying not to laugh.

"Mother," Emily sighed. Her mother held up her hands in surrender at Emily's tone.

"Okay." Their eyes met in the mirror and held. "You look beautiful Sweetheart," Elizabeth told her warmly. Emily felt the blush creeping up her neck. "I'm so proud of you Emi." Her arms encircled Emily at the waist, and Emily leant into her, returning the hug.

"Thank you for all of this," Emily told Elizabeth, still keeping eye contact through the mirror.

"I wanted it to be perfect for you; it's what every parent wants for their child. I'm very annoyed at your father."

"It is perfect. My family is all here and he hasn't been a part of that for years, that was his choice."

Elizabeth breathed out heavily. She and her former husband had been ambitious when they were younger and it had been part of the attraction. At first they had been a loving family, but with the years of travelling, and changes of assignment their family slowly broke down. Both of their careers had led to their divorce, but her former husband had next to nothing to do with Emily since her teenage years. Eventually being fed up with trying to fit his daughter into his work schedule, he chose work rather than his daughter who was starting to act out, a call for attention that Elizabeth regrettably had been unable to recognise till years later. Elizabeth had hoped the wedding would bridge the gap between father and daughter like it had between herself and Emily. But he had been too stubborn.

Emily tilted her head as she contemplated her mother. "Are you okay?"

Her mother gave her a small smile. "Of course, I'm just thinking of the past, when I should be thinking of the future. In less than an hour that man waiting for you downstairs is going to be your husband." Emily smiled at Elizabeth's words. "Derek adores you. I couldn't ask for a better man for my daughter." Her voice broke slightly and Emily slipped her arms completely around her mother, kissing her cheek. Elizabeth allowed the comforting contact for a moment before pulling away. "I don't want to ruin the dress."

"Mom, its fine." Emily pulled her back into an even tighter hug, Elizabeth didn't resist this time. A knock came on the door a few moments later, making them pull away from one another. "Come in," Emily called out.

Dave poked his head around the door. "I have been ordered to report for aisle duty," Dave told them as he looked at Emily. "You look beautiful, Bella." He turned to Elizabeth. "Penelope asked if you could go downstairs. They are about to start."

Elizabeth gave Emily one last warm smile before leaving the room. Emily watched the door for a moment before turning back to Dave.

"Is Morgan at the end of the aisle yet?"

"No, he's talking with Reid and Hotch just outside on the patio," Dave paused. "You're not thinking of making a run for it, are you Kiddo?"

"No," Emily laughed. "Can I borrow your phone?" Dave looked amused for a moment.

"How do you know the rest of ours haven't been confiscated too?"

"There's no way Pen would have taken Hotch's phone off of him."

"Oh, she tried, believe me Kiddo, she tried."

The night before Penelope had demanded Emily and Morgan have no contact till the ceremony, not even by phone. After a long discussion, they had both handed their phones to the techie, before she and Emily left to spend the night at Elizabeth's. Emily raised her eyebrow at Dave, and he handed over his phone.

She quickly dialled Hotch. The unit chief immediately answered his curiousness evident in his voice. "Dave?"

"Sorry Hotch, it's me Emily. Could you hand the phone over to Morgan?" She heard him chuckle on the other end of the phone.

"Okay, hang on." There was muffled speaking, and Emily heard the phone exchange hands. "It's for you."

"Hello?" Morgan answered.

"Hi," Emily said quietly, ignoring the smirk Dave threw at her. She turned towards the window that over looked the driveway.

"Hi," she could hear his smile through the phone. "You gonna come join me down here Princess?"

She glanced at the clock on the wall. "In a few minutes. Are we ready for this?" She asked quietly, knowing he knew what she was referring to.

"We are," his voice was wistful. "Uh, I've got Baby Girl tapping me on the shoulder, she looks pissed." Emily laughed at the image that popped in her head.

"Just wanted to tell you I love you," she told him.

"I love you too."

"I'll see you soon."

"Can't wait."

They both hung up. Emily turned back to Dave. "Nervous?" He asked

"No, but I have no idea how you did this three times."

He smiled sadly, he wasn't offended. "It helps if you marry the right person the first time."

There was a knock at the door. Penelope popped her head in. "You guys ready? We're starting."

As they reached the bottom of the staircase, Emily and Rossi waited as Penelope made her way to her place at the front next to Elizabeth. Emily peaked in at the small gathering of people in her mother's garden. She could see Amy and Annabel a couple of rows from the front, just behind JJ, Will and Henry. Hotch, Beth and Jack were seated just behind Fran, Desirée, Sarah, and Helen. There were a few other friends.

Morgan stood at the front, Spencer to the side of him. Morgan was smiling, but Emily could see a flicker of nervousness in his eyes. Emily gulped back the lump that formed in the back of her throat.

The music started to play and Emily felt Dave move closer to her and offer his arm. She kept her focus on Morgan as she wrapped her arm around Dave's. As soon as they stepped onto the aisle, Morgan's eyes connected with her own and Emily saw the nervousness replaced by relief. They exchanged a small smile as Emily walked down the aisle. Emily could barely hear the whispers and murmurs as she kept her focus on Morgan.

As they reached the front, Dave let go of her arm and gave her a kiss on the cheek, before shaking hands with Morgan. Dave took her bouquet of gerberas and passed it to Penelope as he took the seat next to her. Emily felt Morgan slip his hand into hers, and she tightened her hold on his fingers.

The Registrar began to speak. "I would like to start by welcoming everyone to celebrate the union of Derek and Emily. The essence of marriage lies in committing oneself to the other person entirely as a friend, confidant, companion, and lover. This decision should never be made lightly, but should be considered with utmost care, respect, and loyalty.

"Emily and Derek are taking a step together and celebrating their love with the sanctity of marriage. And that is why, we are here to share their love with one another and give our blessings and wishes to them for a beautiful and happy marriage.

"Emily and Derek, today you have come here with an intention to marry one another and join hands forever. Now I believe Emily and Derek have prepared something to say to one another." The registrar nodded to Morgan to start.

Morgan took a deep breath. He had tried writing down what he wanted to say to Emily, but whenever he tried he hadn't been able to convey what he wanted it to. Standing with her in front of their family and friends the words came naturally to him. "Emily ten years ago when we became partners at the BAU, I had no idea that I had found someone who I could share the rest of my life with. I promise to be there when you need me, to comfort you and encourage you, to be your best friend. After years of hiding my feelings, I want to spend the rest of my life showing you how much I love you." A tear slipped from his eye and Emily reached up with her free hand to wipe it away, her palm lingering on his cheek. Morgan turned his head to the side to place a kiss on it. Her hand dropped to Morgan's free hand.

Emily's own eyes watered as she started to speak. "Soon after we met I confessed to being a nerd. I started to quote Vonnegut to you, and you finished it for me. _'__So be careful who you pretend to be'_. You have always been able to see the real me, no matter how much I tried to hide it. When I was lost, you found me and brought me home. For the rest of my life I promise to walk by your side, to love, help and encourage you. I will share your laughter and your tears as your partner, lover and best friend." The tears fell freely from Emily's eyes, but she didn't reach up to wipe them away.

The registrar's words barely registered with Emily as she and Morgan kept eye contact. She watched Morgan's lips as he repeated the words the registrar instructed him to say. Emily felt herself doing the same when it was her turn. Emily felt Morgan's hand leave hers as he turned to Reid for her wedding band. He pushed it onto her ring finger as he spoke. "With this ring, I wed thee. I shall love you, honour you, and cherish you for as long as we both shall live. This is a symbol of my undying love for you."

Emily saw out of the corner of her eye Penelope move to her side and Emily took the ring offered to her. She pushed it onto Morgan's finger as she repeated the same words. They stood staring at each other as the registrar spoke his last words. "By the power vested in me by the Marriage Act, pronounce Derek and Emily to be married. You may now kiss your bride."

Derek's hands let go of her hands to take hold of her waist to pull her to him. Emily ran her hands up his arms, wrapping them around his shoulders as their lips met. They pulled apart, laughing as they heard the clapping and cheering of their family.

Author note – one more chapter to go. Let me know what you think.


	25. Chapter 25

Additional disclaimer – I couldn't find the source of the quote at the end of the chapter, so I couldn't reference it. I didn't write it, just borrowing.

Second Chances – chapter twenty five

When the waiter offered her a glass of wine, Emily slowly reached out to take it. She held it in her hand but didn't take a sip. She watched Morgan over the other side of the room crouched down talking to Annabel as she laughed at whatever he was saying. Amy stood beside them, also enthralled by him. She watched as Annabel pointed to where Spencer sat with Henry, Jack and Helen showing them magic tricks. Emily smiled as Morgan scooped the little girl up and carried her over to the table. Placing her in the seat next to Spencer, he said something to the younger man, who smiled and leaned down to say something to Annabel. The little girl beamed up at Spencer and nodded enthusiastically. Apparently he had asked her to be his assistant in the trick he was performing.

Morgan, who had placed his hands on the back of Annabel's chair, turned to look at Emily, their eyes meeting and they shared a knowing look.

"Wait till that's your little one," JJ said bringing Emily out of her thoughts. "Thought you might want to swap," JJ held out the glass in her hand, a smile playing on her lips.

_Before the wedding the blonde had arrived early at Elizabeth's to help them get ready. While Emily had been drying her hair, JJ had entered her room. Walking up beside Emily as she sat at the dressing table, JJ produced a small pack of crackers. Emily's eyes snapped up at JJ's, whose eyes were full of understanding._

"_These may help." _

_Emily took the proffered packet and placed them on the table. JJ said nothing more, just placed her hand on Emily's shoulder reassuringly. Emily lifted her hand to squeeze her friends in thanks._

"How did you know?"

"Morgan mentioned you haven't been feeling well for a few weeks. Then last night I saw a look on your face and I remember having it on mine in those first weeks," JJ said quietly so no one around them could hear.

"We didn't want to tell anyone till I was further along. There are more risks."

JJ nodded. "We'll just have to keep swapping drinks all night then." They clinked their glasses as they both laughed. Emily took a sip of the non-alcoholic drink JJ had given her. "Congratulations Em."

They watched as Alex approached the kids table and said something to Helen, who stood while Alex spoke to Amy. All three women started to make their way over to Emily and JJ, as Penelope wrapped her arms around them behind. "Now my Pretties, the kids are being watched, so it's time to dance before the speeches start." Her friends laughed at her as she pushed them towards the dance floor. Penelope snagged Beth's hand as they passed her, dragging her along too from where she was talking to Elizabeth, Hotch and Morgan's mother and aunt.

At some point the rest of the wedding party joined them. Morgan slipped his arms around her waist from behind as he kissed her cheek as he hugged her from behind. She saw someone passing around glasses as someone cleared their throat into the microphone on the stage.

Emily listened as Spencer began his speech, laughing when he mentioned Rossi's upcoming speech. His words washed over her as she stood contentedly in Morgan's arms. When he mentioned second chances, she turned to look at her husband. Finding his eyes on hers, she felt him squeeze her tighter, his hands flattening across her waist. Emily leant up and placed a small kiss just under his jaw before turning her attention back to the stage, as she pressed herself back into Morgan.

Emily watched as Spencer and Rossi shook hands and the younger man made his way too them. One of Morgan's hands lifted from her waist to draw Spencer into their embrace. Overcome with emotion as she was stuck between the two men, Emily brushed her lips against Spencer's cheek as she listened to Morgan thanking their friend for everything he had done for them.

Emily followed Spencer with her eyes as he made his way to Helen, taking her hand in his as she laid her head on his shoulder. She smiled at the sight. Her friend's heart had been mended.

Laughter drew her attention back to the stage as Rossi shared a particularly embarrassing story about herself and Morgan. Morgan dropped his lips to her exposed collarbone as he tried to hide his blush from those who turned to look at them in amusement.

"I love you," she felt him whisper against her skin. They both chuckled as Rossi reached the end of his story, both ignoring the looks their mothers sent them. It was JJ who saved them from more humiliation.

"Remember there are little ones with big ears Rossi," she called to the older profiler. He nodded in acknowledgement and wrapped up his speech. Stepping down from the stage he made his way to them.

Emily wrapped her arms around the man who had been a surrogate father to her since she had met him. "Love you Tesoro," he said before pulling away to shake Morgan's hand.

"Great speech, Rossi," Morgan told him pointedly, but his eyes showed his humour.

Dave shrugged. "The Kid's speech was a tough act to follow." As he walked past them the music started up again.

Emily turned to face Morgan as he offered her his hand. "Dance with me Mrs Morgan?"

An hour later they sat a table with Fran, Elizabeth, Sarah and Desirée. Emily leant against him as his arm lay around her waist, his fingers stroking her stomach as they listened to their mothers share stories from their childhoods. Penelope joined them for a moment, waiting for a lull in conversation before turning to Emily. She used the bouquet in her hand to point at the bride.

"Come on my Raven haired beauty, you have a bouquet to throw."

Emily turned to Morgan, kissing him deeply causing him to moan quietly when she pulled away reluctantly to follow Penelope. Morgan watched as Emily told his sisters to follow her because if she was being forced into this tradition, then they would be too. Elizabeth and Fran followed to get a closer look. Morgan saw Spencer and Helen on the dance floor parting at Penelope's insistence as she pulled Helen to join the single women on the dance floor behind Emily.

Morgan felt Spencer sat next to him as he watched his wife interact with their friends, a huge smile on her face. A glass of scotch was placed in front of him and Spencer held his own glass.

"Looks like the dancing lessons are working Kid," he said turning to the younger man. "You haven't stepped on Helen's toes once."

"I haven't stepped on Emily's toes in six weeks either," Spencer grinned in response. Morgan grinned back.

"Thank you," Morgan said, turning serious.

Spencer's face frowned in confusion. "What for?"

"None of this would have happened if you hadn't told me you were mad at me three years ago."

Spencer pursed his lips. "A lot has happened since then," he turned his gaze briefly to where Helen and Penelope stood on the dance floor as they waited for Emily to take her place on the stage. "I'm certain I wouldn't be here today if you hadn't come to my apartment that day." Morgan's eyes clouded over at the reference. "You helped me through a time in my life when I was ready to give up."

"We helped each other." They shared an understanding look.

Their attention was caught by the clapping and cheering coming from the dance floor, they watched as Emily threw the bouquet and it was caught by Helen.

Morgan's hand clasped Spencer's shoulder. "Looks like you're the next one taking a trip up the aisle."

Spencer lips quirked as he gave a slight nod. "You remember the conversation we had when you came back from London the first time?" Morgan nodded. "You asked me if there was anything you could do to repay me." Morgan nodded again. Spencer took a deep breath before continuing. "I'm not ready to ask her yet, but when I am would you be my best man?"

Morgan smiled at the younger man as he picked up the glass in front of him and touched it to Spencer's. "Of course, it'd be an honour." They both took a sip before Spencer spoke again.

"How far along is Emily?" Morgan's head whipped around at the question.

"Huh?"

"How many weeks is she?"

"Ssh," Morgan whispered. "How did you know?"

"I have noticed that pregnant women tend to cover their abdomen area protectively with their hands, no matter what stage they are at. Both of you have been doing that since last week, but today your hands have barely left that area of her body," Spencer whispered quickly leaning in towards his friend. "Also, JJ keeps picking up the sparkling grape juice that's for the children and she and Emily exchange glances before swapping glasses, I don't think anyone else has noticed it though."

Morgan closed his eyes briefly. If Spencer was noticing their behaviour, other people were too. "We found out last week. She's about five weeks. We didn't want anyone to know till she was a bit further along. She, uh, kind of freaked about potential risks when we found out." Morgan's mind flashed back to the night just over a week ago when he came home to find her pacing in the kitchen.

_Initially, he had thought he had done something wrong. That maybe the stress of the wedding was getting to her. As soon as Emily had noticed his presence, she had dived into his arms, clinging to him as she tried not to sob into his chest. The one and only time that had happened was when her father had rejected her over their engagement. Morgan had told her to tell him what was wrong. He had only been able to make out the words baby, you and me. He looked over her shoulder at the kitchen counter and saw four unused pregnancy tests, spilling out of the paper bag. Morgan had managed to calm her down, and convinced her to take the tests. _

_They had gone upstairs, and he stood outside the bathroom while Emily took the tests. Once done, she had opened the bathroom door, and they had waited in silence for the alarm to ring on Emily's phone. Emily passed the first test to Morgan with trembling hands. One by one they checked them. All positive. _

_Looking at Morgan, Emily had felt bad for her first reaction. This was supposed to be a happy time for him, finding out he was going to be a father for the first time, except the mother of the child was freaking out. But Morgan had done what he usually did, set his own feelings aside and asked her what was wrong. After returning downstairs, Emily had told him about Italy, Johnny and Matthew, and the abortion. He held her all night as she cried. They had made the doctor's appointment the next morning._

_The next evening Emily and Morgan sat side by side on the sofa as they both continued to stare at the piece of paper in Emily's hands. While they hadn't been consciously trying, they hadn't been doing anything to prevent it either. According to the test results from her doctor, she was four weeks along. _

"_Emily?" Morgan questioned when she didn't respond. "Talk to me, Emily," he said quietly. Emily turned to look at him with watery eyes, before leaning into him for comfort. Engulfing her in his arms, he pressed his lips to her forehead. _

"_I'm scared," Emily whispered against his shoulder. "What if I lose it?" Tears slipped down her face at the thought. In the short time she had known, Emily had already fallen in love with the child growing inside of her. It was a life that she and Morgan had created. Morgan pressed his lips to her forehead again._

"_I want to keep the baby," she paused as she spoke the word out loud. "But I'm worried about complications," she explained. "I know the doctor said I was healthy and that everything seems to be going fine, but this is considered a high risk pregnancy if you couple my age with the damage from my injuries. I'm petrified something will go wrong."_

Spencer's voice cut through his thoughts. "Considering her age, Emily is generally very healthy and there have been no lasting complications from Doyle's attack. Her chances of going to term with a healthy child are very high." Morgan smiled at his friend's reassurance. Morgan noted the absence of statistics from his words; he didn't know if Spencer knew any of them regarding high risk pregnancy or if he was trying to put his friend's mind at ease, but Morgan was certain he would research it if Morgan asked him to.

The crowd on the dance floor broke up and Helen made her way over to the table, the bouquet held in her hands. She took the seat next to Spencer's and his hand found hers. The two smiled at each other, before leaning into one another.

"Are you enjoying yourself Helen?" Morgan asked the shy woman. Immediately she turned to him and her smile grew with her answer.

"It's a wonderful day, Morgan. I'm very happy for you and Emily." Morgan smiled gently at her.

"Thank you. I hope Spencer has been keeping his feet to himself." Helen laughed softly, her eyes flashing to Spencer's as he blushed.

"He has; I have never danced this much in my entire life. I can't believe I caught the bouquet."

"You let me know if he doesn't make good on that tradition." Helen looked at Spencer quizzically, only to find a smile on his face which she couldn't decipher. Morgan stood up as he grasped Spencer's shoulder, patting it in encouragement. "I'm going to leave you two to it and go find Emily."

He found her on the edge of the dance floor holding a sleepy Annabel. The little girl was resting her head on Emily's shoulder as she twirled Spencer buttonhole flower between her fingers, a gift from Spencer for being a good assistant.

"Hey," he said quietly so not to disturb Annabel. Morgan stood next to Emily, his hand rested on Emily's back, and he saw the toddler give him a sleepy smile before burying her head into Emily's neck.

"Amy has gone to get their coats, this one is tired although she's trying hard to fight it."

"How about you?" Morgan asked. Before Emily could reply Amy interrupted them.

"Even though we have had a wonderful time, and would love to stay but this one needs her bed," she said as she held her hands out to Annabel, who gave a reluctant noise as she went to her mother's arms.

"Thank you for coming Amy," Emily told her as she helped put Annabel's coat on her. Amy gave her a smile.

"Nothing would have kept me away from this."

"We'll see you before you go back," Emily hugged her friend, careful of Annabel.

"You better," Amy said returning the hug. She pulled back and kissed Morgan on the cheek. "You take care of her."

"I will," he promised. Amy was told that her taxi was here.

As soon as they were out of ear shot, Morgan drew Emily into him, his hands resting on her hips as he covered her lips with his. She moaned into him. Getting her own back, she teased her tongue along his bottom lip, before pulling away. It was his turn to moan at the loss of contact.

"Reid knows," Morgan whispered and Emily's eyes widened slightly.

"I thought we weren't telling anyone." Emily smiled at him.

"Apparently JJ knows too, keeps helping you swap your glass." She looked a little embarrassed.

"_Don't get me wrong, I want to tell everyone we're going to be parents. But we've just found out you're carrying my child, and you're marrying me next week, I'll pretty much agree to anything you ask me right now."_

"_Anything?" Emily asked a mischievous smirk on her face. Morgan chuckled softly beside her. "I'll remember that for later," she said kissing him lightly before pulling away and standing up. _

"Take me home," Emily whispered as she wound her arms around his neck. "I want to test your promise of 'anything'." His chest vibrated against hers as he laughed.

"Sure you're not too tired?" His eyebrows rose suggestively.

"Never."

_He shook his head at her, his eyes fixated on her stomach. When Emily moved her hands to feel the area, Morgan placed his over hers and both of them lifted the shirt up to just under her bra. Morgan shuffled forward on the sofa, so he was sitting on the edge. He leant into her, kissing her abdomen. Looking up at her from his position, he said, "We're having a baby."_

'One day at a time-this is enough. Do not look back and grieve over the past for it is gone; and do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come. Live in the present, and make it so beautiful it will be worth remembering.'

THE END

Author Note – This is where I'm going to leave Emily and Morgan for this story. I do have plans for other stories. I have been asked to write Spencer and Helen's story, and I will but I'm going to take a bit of a rest first. Which brings me to a request, a few weeks ago I bought seasons two to seven of CM for my birthday and next weekend I'm house sitting for my sister. I'm planning a bit of a marathon CM evening and was wondering what people's favourite Derek and Emily episode (and or Spencer) was or maybe top three if you can't decide on just one. PM me if you want to tell me, thanks.

I just want to thank everyone who has followed the story till the end. I appreciate all the comments, followers and favourites from people; they have really kept me going. Special thanks to Guest, Lexis4MorganPrentiss, tannerose5, AnnKa, Nix1978, rmpcmfan and Pagetgirl78, you guys have been brilliant.


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